Keys of Destiny
by Kowaiki
Summary: The defeat of the final boss doesn't mark the end of trouble. Sora and Roxas must once again wield their keyblades to save their friends and the world. They embark on a journey that will lead them to new enemies and confrontations with their own feelings.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts 2. All the characters belong to Disney and Square-Enix.

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 1: Ambushed

Destiny Island was renowned for being the perfect place to watch sunset. Due to not being the tourist season at that time, very few people were hanging around the beach. The beautiful coastal area was almost deserted. This late afternoon, two teenage boys sat on the biggest tree of a small island subordinate of the main island. The two of them were best friends. Fate had kept them separated for a long period of time. They were only reunited by destiny not long ago.

"Nothing has changed," Riku said, staring at the beautiful sunset.

"Nothing will change," Sora added. It felt great to be back on Destiny Island. He had been away for a long time, called by the duty of fighting the darkness that resided in people's hearts. His enemy, the Heartless, attempted to destroy all worlds. They would have succeeded if Sora and his friends, Donald and Goofy, didn't defeat the master of all Heartless, Ansem. Sora, Goofy and Donald travelled through many worlds to fight the Heartless. Many whom they met on the way aid them on their journey. Now, they were all back to the world where they belong.

After defeating Ansem, Sora, Donald and Goofy were separated from their friends Riku and King Mickey. In order to find their friends again, they set off on another journey. They revisited many places and reunited with old faces. It was a long and tough journey. They were faced with a new type group enemy, called the Nobody. Nobody was controlled by a group of powerful Nobody who refer themselves as Organisation XIII. At the end, Sora, Donald and Goofy defeated the organisation and found their friends.

Even now, Sora could hardly believe their journey had ended. He couldn't complain though, because he found his best friend, Riku. For many times, Sora thought he had found Riku during his search. It turned out Riku was running away from him. Riku's body changed as a result of accepting darkness in his heart. He didn't want to be seen by his friends therefore he hided. Fortunately, Riku was able to regain his original body thanks to philosopher Ansem. Philosopher Ansem was the true Ansem, not the master of Heartless who claimed to be Ansem. Now that all the battles were over and they were finally home, Sora wasn't going to let Riku out of his sight again. Not ever.

Sora took a deep breath and exhaled. The temperature, the humidity and the salty scent of the ocean – he truly felt he was home.

"Riku! Sora!" Kairi, who was also Sora's best friend, came running to the two with a bottle in her hand. "This is for you," Kairi handed over the bottle to Sora, trying to catch her breath.

Sora took the bottle. There was a letter rolled up inside. The letter was marked with the Mickey's personal stamp. "Is this from the King?" Sora pulled out the plug and shook out the letter. Riku and Kairi gathered around to him as he read.

_Dear Sora, Riku and Kairi,_

_How are you all? I am very well, so are Donald and Goofy. We all miss you very much. It has been a month since we last saw you. Are you three enjoying your time together? Donald, Goofy and I are certainly happy to be back at Disney Castle. I half expected to be scolded by my Queen for being away for such a long time with such short notice (if any at all!). Fortunately she was understanding and did not release her temper on me._

_The coming Sunday is my birthday. Therefore I would like to invite all of you to my castle. I will send Chip and Dale to pick you up in that morning. Please wait for us on Destiny Island._

_There is also something important I have to tell you when you come. I hope I am wrong but I am afraid new trouble may be just around the corner. It is probably the best for me to tell you personally, so I'll fill you in at once when you arrive._

_I look forward to seeing you all._

_Regards,_

_Mickey_

"Cool! We're going to the king's birthday party!" Sora said in excitement.

Kairi looked more worried than happy. "I wonder what new trouble the king is talking about."

"I think you should be more worried about what present to get him," Riku grinned. He took the letter from Sora's hand and read it again. "He will pick us up this coming Sunday. That is only three days away."

"Riku is right," Sora said cheerfully. "Besides, there's nothing the three of us can't do."

The three of them decided it was time to head back home. Their homes were not located on Destiny Island but on the main continent.

"Let's see who gets back first!" Sora suggested, casting Riku a daring look. Riku gave him a proud look in return.

With a smile, Kairi put her hands on her hip. "You two are up for that again? Don't you guys ever grow up? Well then, I'll count to three. Ready? One, two, three!"

On the count of three, Sora and Riku began to sprint towards the direction of the main continent. As fast as he could, Sora ran. The only thing on this mind was the goal. Cool air brushed his face as Sora ran. Riku was slightly ahead of him. Being the shorter one, Sora had to admit he was disadvantaged. However, that didn't mean he was going to give up easily.

Riku crossed the finish mark a couple of seconds before Sora. "Looks like I kicked your ass again Sora," Riku said, trying to give Sora a smirk and catch his breath at the same time.

"Just you watch, I'll kick yours next time," Sora wiped some sweats off his face and grinned. Kairi caught up with the two from behind.

Suddenly, a huge shadow loomed over them. The three friends looked up together in unison. Flying over them was a group of Nobody. There were at least twenty of them. Sora guessed they were all low-ranked Nobody since none had human shape. There was something different about these Nobody. They still had white thin bodies and a larger head. Unlike the ones he fought before, these ones also had a XIII mark on their forehead. Two of the Nobody were larger than the others. They looked like flying cages, big enough to fit a person.

Before the three of them could finch, the Nobodies attacked. Sora silently summoned his keyblade. He chose Ultima Weapon for its attack power. Riku already had his Road to the Dawn ready.

"Why are there Nobody here? I thought we defeated them all after beating Xemnas!" Sora eliminated one of the Nobody closest to him.

Riku swung Soul Eater at the larger Nobody and missed. "It's not something to be surprised about, Sora. If Heartless can't disappear completely, there will always be Nobodies around. I'm just surprise they got here so quickly without the help of Organisation XIII," he said.

The Nobodies might be advantaged in terms of numbers but they were not match for the keyblade bearers. Within minutes, Sora and Riku reduced their number to six. The two larger Nobodies still stood. There were four smaller ones around. They didn't appear to be much of a challenge – until they screeched.

The instant the sound reached Sora's ears, he felt like his entire soul was shaken. Instinct told him to covered up his ears as fast as he could. It was no use. The screeches seemed to penetrate flesh. Sora felt like his soul was being torn apart by the horrible sound. Riku and Kairi were doing the same. They looked as pale as he did. The only difference was Riku put his hand over where his heart was. He seemed to be experiencing greater pain in the heart than Sora and Kairi. Sora knew the only way to stop the sound was to eliminate the Nobody. He tried to wield his keyblade but failed to even lift it. His body hurt more than he could imagine. Riku collapsed on the sand, he appeared to have fainted. One of the larger Nobody opened its mouth and swallowed him into its belly. The other Nobody swallowed up Kairi in the same manner.

"No! Riku! Kairi!" Sora cried, running towards his friends. The concern for his friends somehow enabled him to move again. The two large Nobody took off as soon as they had their prey. They were flying away. Sora despaired. It couldn't be happening. Not after they finally found each other after so many years. The four Nobodies that were left behind were hindering Sora with melee attacks. Sora fanned off another Nobody with a weak blow. His body hadn't ceased hurting and couldn't summon any strength in his arm. The two Nobodies that carried away Riku and Kairi eventually disappeared into the horizon. With a cry of anguish, Sora cut through another Nobody before he fainted.

After some time, Sora felt consciousness was slowly returning. He had no idea how long he had been there lying face flat on the sand. Though that seemed to be the least of his concern. He had yet to open his eyes or move his body. Besides the gentle sound of sea waves, he could hear someone calling his name.

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Author's ramblings: I've always wanted to resurrect Roxas. I think I can only ever do that in a fanfiction. Please review after reading, thanks 


	2. Chapter 2

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 2: Familiar face

"Sora, wake up. Sora!"

Someone was shaking Sora's shoulder. The voice wasn't Riku's. On his second thought, how could it be Riku? It certainly sounded familiar, whoever it was calling him. Sora opened his eyes and gingerly sat himself upright. He sheepishly looked around for the origin of the voice. A teenage boy around the same age as him squatted next to him. He had blonde spiky hair and sky blue eyes that were identical to Sora's.

Sora blinked. And blinked. And blinked again.

"Stop batting your eyelashes at me, Sora. You're not seeing things," grumbled Roxas, who sound slightly annoyed.

"I am! No, wait. Hold on a minute! Roxas? Roxas?!" Sora thought his eyes must be as big as saucers at that moment. His eyes were definitely deceiving him. "Aren't you suppose to be within me?"

Roxas stood up and folded his arms. He looked the same as the last time Sora saw him, right before the last battle with Xemnas. "Don't ask me. I don't know exactly why I'm separated from you. I found myself here after you blanked out. It's got to have something to do with the screeches we heard."

His words reminded Sora of those Nobody. He sprung up and scanned around for enemies. His trusty keyblade materialised instantly. Destiny Island was deserted. There wasn't anybody except them. He realised it was already nighttime. The sun must have set not long ago. Then it came to him. "Did you defeat them?" he asked Roxas. The keyblade disappeared because its master no longer require it.

"Who do you think I am?" Roxas grinned. He straightened his face. "Those were not Nobody, Sora. They were Neo Nobody."

"Neo Nobody? How did you know?" Sora raised an eyebrow.

Roxas lifted his nose. "Did you forget? I'm a Nobody too."

In fact, Roxas was indeed Sora's Nobody. When Sora used the keyblade on himself to free Kairi's heart, Sora turned into a Heartless for a very short time. All beings were made up of soul, heart and body. When the heart left and a Heartless is born, the soul and body would reborn into this world as a different being. Roxas existence remained unknown to Sora for some time. Organisation XIII discovered Roxas and made him the thirteenth member. It took philosopher Ansem and Riku a great deal of effort to return Roxas to Sora. It was necessary to do so because that was the only way they could defeat Xemnas and the organisation.

"You mean you can talk to them?" Sora asked in bewilderment. He shook off some sand caught in his spiky brown hair.

Roxas threw up his hands. "Of course. Anyway, there are more important things for us to do right now. We need to find Riku and Kairi," he said. "The king won't pick us up in another three days. I guess we just have to wait."

Sora clenched his fists. "I can't wait three days. Who knows what would happen to Riku and Kairi? I need to tell the king what happened and find help." Anger boiled inside him. He couldn't forgive himself for allowing his friends to be kidnapped when he was with them. There was no way he would just wait and do nothing.

"But there's no gummi ship in this world, is there? How do we go to Disney Castle?" Roxas pointed out.

Sora paused and thought for a moment. "There may be a way," he said slowly. "I haven't tried it before, but it may just work. Follow me!" Sora indicated to Roxas to follow his lead.

A full moon hung high in the starless sky. Destiny Island was a quiet place at nighttime. Seagulls that circled the sky during the day had returned to their nests. Children from the main continent who regularly came to play on the island had long returned home. With Sora in the lead, Roxas followed closely behind. Their swift walking pace soon broke into a run. They left the beach and came on a long wooden boardwalk. Soon they came to a ladder that led downwards. Lacking the patience to climb down, Sora jumped. Roxas followed suit. At last they reached a thick bush next to a small spring. Roxas recognised this place from seeing it through Sora's eyes. Barging into the thick bush, Sora found the hidden path that led to his secret place. The tunnel-like path was quite narrow so both of them had to bent down as low as they could to make their way through. An adult probably wouldn't be able to enter.

They were in a dark cave filled with big tree roots. Roxas spotted some mushrooms and vines, plants that grew well in the dark. Though he had been here when he was within Sora, he didn't know its significance. Roxas wanted to ask about the cave, but decided it wasn't the time.

Sora, who seemed to have guessed his thoughts, smiled. "This is a secret place that only me and Kairi knows. Not even Riku had been here before. I guess it's not really a secret anymore, since I just told you." He pointed at a wooden door that Roxas hadn't noticed before. The door's colour almost blended it with the cave. There was no keyhole or knob on it.

Sora walked closer to the door until he was directly in front of it. "Before I left Destiny Island last time, a hooded person appeared out of nowhere and spoke to me. Come to think about it, his outfit looked a little like what the members of Organisation XIII wore."

"Xemnas?" asked a frowning Roxas.

Sora shook his head. "I didn't get to see his face. What I suspect is he might have come through this door right here. I don't know how it was possible now, since a door like this should only be able to be open by those with the keyblade. May be he didn't come through using this door. What I'm thinking is, it may lead us to another world."

Roxas thought along the same line as Sora. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Sora nodded. The kingdom keyblade materialised in his hand. He lifted and pointed it to the door whilst Roxas watched. A golden knob appeared on the door. Taking deep breath, Sora turned the knob and opened it with caution.

Dark buildings and tall skyscrapers came into view. Cool neo lights shone on his face. Sora knew this place. He opened wide the door for him and Roxas.

"The World That Never Was, the home of all Nobody," Roxas said firmly. He was a little surprise this world wasn't destroyed in the last battle. The Organisation's white castle was no longer there though the town still stands. The tallest skyscraper in the night city stood as grandly as he remembered. This was where he met face to face with Sora for the first time. This was also the place where he fought Riku the first time. It was ironic when he thinks about it. Riku and him were enemies last time, but now he was trying to save him. "If we are here, that means we can go to Twilight Town."

Sora agreed, feeling slightly envious and a little defeated that his Nobody thought of it before he did. He closed the wooden door behind him. The knob vanished once it was shut.

They began to make their way to where the warp-hole to virtual Twilight Town located. Without warning, several Nobody emerged from thin air. Sora did a quick count. There were seven of them. They were ordinary Nobody, not the Neo Nobody they just fought. Regardless, Sora materialised his keyblade and readied himself for the upcoming battle.

Lifting an arm, Roxas stopped Sora from going further. He stood between Sora and the Nobody with his back facing Sora. "Wait, Sora," Roxas requested. Unsure of what was going on, Sora did as he was told.

"In the name of Roxas, I order you to stop there, now." Roxas said to the Nobody in a commanding tone, his face stern. To Sora's surprise, the Nobody stopped coming closer.

"Tell me, are there any Neo Nobody in this world?" Roxas spoke to the Nobody in the middle, who seemed to be the leader. The Nobody replied in a low and squeaky language Sora didn't understand.

"I see…" Roxas cupped his chin with a hand, appeared to be thinking. "What is the situation between Nobody and Neo Nobody?" Nearby, Sora watched in amazement. He knew perfectly well Roxas was part of him, yet Roxas could do things he couldn't. He started to find it hard to believe they were the same person. It made him think back to one of "the Other" Ansem reports he read, the real Ansem reports. Philosopher Ansem described Nobody as another being, separate from its parent being.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Sora managed to catch the last part of Roxas' orders for the seven Nobody. "I hereby declare war between Nobody and Neo Nobody. All Neo Nobody in this world are to be eliminated. If any of you find Riku and Kairi, report to me at once. Any suspicious movement of the Neo Nobody must be reported immediately as well. Understand?" When Roxas finished, the Nobody bowed and flied away.

"What did they say?" Sora asked.

Roxas turned to face Sora. "Riku and Kairi don't seem to be here, but our friends the Neo Nobody are. Those seven Nobody said they didn't know where the Neo Nobody came from. One day they weren't here, and the next day they were. They also told me that ear-piercing screech is called Soul Shatter. What that does is rip apart people's soul. I guess because we have been separated before, I parted you more easily than others. It should take more screeches to cut a soul that has never fallen apart."

"Wait a minute, why are the Nobody listening to you when you are branded as a traitor to the organisation?" Sora asked. He was a little proud of himself to have thought of that.

Roxas closed his eyes and opened them again. "You're right. To tell you the truth, I'm not so sure either. I think it's partly because they are leader-less right now. Some of them worked under me before so I have their trust. They know they need to be united, otherwise the Neo Nobody will take over."

"I get it!" Sora exclaimed all of a sudden. "When I finished off the Nobody back on Destiny Island before I black out, I separated its body and soul. You took that body, didn't you? Otherwise you don't be able to take a form."

"Actually, that might've been it," Roxas agreed, looking surprised. "I didn't know you were capable for solving something so complicated," he smirked.

"What did you say?" Sora raised his fist threateningly, pretending to be angry. They both laughed.

Sora folded his arms when his stomach stopped hurting from laughing. "That makes sense. But why do they want to part people's soul?"

"I don't know, Sora. Your guess is as good as mine," Roxas replied.

They continued their way to the warp hole. They found it in the familiar alleyway, just the way they left it. Sora and Roxas were relieved to see it still there. Sora thought of something that made him wanted to kick himself. He should've remembered to ask Pence to turn off Ansem's computer so neither the Nobody or Neo Nobody could get to Twilight Town through the other warp-hole that connected the virtual Twilight Town and the real Twilight Town. He was worried about his friends Hayner, Pence and Olette.

Sora and Roxas stepped into the warp-hole and entered the virtual Twilight Town. They reappeared in the secret underground computer room beneath the haunted mansion, as they expected. The computers were a mess. Roxas remembered taking out his anger on them before he found Sora in the egg-shaped pod. All that happened quite recently, yet Roxas felt like years have passed. He quickened his pace when he heard Sora calling him to hurry. Sora managed to set the machine on timer. So even without Pence's help, the machine would take them where they want it. Sora and Roxas stood side by side below the warping device. Together, they were brought to the real Twilight Town.

* * *

**Author's rambling:** This chapter mainly focus on interaction between Sora and Roxas. There will be more interaction with other characters in the next chapter. 


	3. Chapter 3

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 3: Friends

Before leaving the haunted mansion, Roxas suggested they should look at Ansem's computer, to see if they could find a way to transfer him back to Sora. Sora was against the idea. He didn't want to meddle with something he didn't know well, in case he broke anything by accident. They agreed that Cid of Radiant Garden would be the best person to ask about computer-related things. In fact, there was a more important reason that Sora didn't tell Roxas. He needed Roxas' help to get to Disney Castle. He didn't feel like he could make it alone. It was different to the time when he travelled alone in the Castle of Oblivion. Back then, Sora knew there were friends who would aid him in the form of cards. Now, he was totally left to himself. Although Sora wasn't entirely sure if being with his own Nobody could actually count as having "someone else" with him.

Once they left the haunted mansion, they swiftly moved through the woods. They were careful though to stay alert for any Heartless and Neo Nobody that might happen to be nearby. Luckily, they didn't encounter any. Soon they reached the big hole on the town's boundary wall. When Sora was about to go through, he realised Roxas wasn't following.

Puzzled, Sora asked him what was wrong. Roxas answered it was nothing and went through the hole. Sora was sure he heard a hint of hesitation in his voice. Lowering himself, he passed through to the other side into the town.

They were greeted by an unexpected amount of noise on Market Street. The town looked rather peaceful besides that, with nothing out of place. The mini tram that went around the Market Street was operating as usual. The part time job recruitment posters were up at where they were always found. The free-to-use skateboard lied on the side of the path. The noises seemed to be coming from the Sandlot's direction. They heard some yelling and crying. There was a loud voice that stood out from all other noises.

Sora was curious. "I wonder what that racket is about," he stood on his toes to see if he could see through the obstacles. He couldn't see anything unusual.

Roxas searched in his memories for the owner of that voice. It was somewhat familiar to him. "I've heard of that voice somewhere before," he muttered.

"Seifer!" Sora and Roxas said on the exact same beat.

"That Seifer, he's probably bullying other kids again," scowled Roxas, slamming his right fist into his left palm.

"Hmm…I'm not sure about that," said Sora, a little surprised by Roxas' reaction. They wasted no time to run over to see what was going on.

The scene came into their view. They weren't too far off their guess. On the side of Sandlot near the Struggle Battle result board, stood Seifer, Rai and Fuu. Instead of Vivi, whom Roxas thought was again the victim of Seifer's habitual bullying, those three encircled a small white moogle. The moogle was crying, covering its eyes with its little hands.

The gang of three were yet to notice Sora and Roxas. "What? Can you be a bit louder? I can't hear you," Seifer asked loudly. Rai and Fuu stood on each side of him, trapping the frightened moogle in the middle. The moogle just kept on crying regardless what they ask.

Feeling sorry for the moogle, Roxas marched up to the three. Seifer, Rai and Fuu spread out a little when they saw him. "Leave the little guy alone, Seifer," he snapped. The little moogle was overjoyed to see Roxas. It trotted away from the three and hid behind Roxas' feet, only showing its head to peek at Seifer.

"Well, well. Looks like I'm more famous than I know," Seifer smirked, shifting his attention away from the moogle onto Roxas. "What do we have here? Spiky-head?" he started to laugh mockingly. Rai and Fuu joined in as though they were trained to.

"What are you up to again, Seifer?" demanded Sora.

Seifer recognised Sora, "Oh it's you. I suppose he's your friend?" he said, indicating to Roxas. "We were only trying to help the moogle. It looks like it's lost or something," he shrugged.

Rai crossed his arms. "Yeah that's right, what did ya think we were doin'?"

"Help," Fuu spoke in her usual mono-vocabulary manner.

"Making people cry isn't exactly helping," Roxas glared at Seifer, showing no intention of backing down.

Seeing the situation wasn't getting any better, Sora decided he better do something so they wouldn't be stuck here for hours. "Chill out Roxas, I think Seifer was really trying to help," Sora whispered to the blonde hair teenager.

Seifer looked at Sora and Roxas and snorted. "I have better things to do than hanging around you two. You can help the moogle. You better give it a bottle soon or it'll cry again." Laughing their heads off, Seifer, Rai and Fuu left.

When their laughter eventually died out, Roxas turned to the moogle that hide behind him. "Hello. What's your name?" He crouched down so he could be closer to it.

The small moogle wiped away some of the tears that remained on its face. It appeared to be a child in moogle standard, only about two-thirds the size of the moogles at moogle shops. "My name is Moogly, kupo," it sniffed, looking up to Roxas.

"Why were you crying?" Sora asked.

"Were they bullying you? Seifer and the other two," Roxas asked.

"My world was attacked by a lot of new type of Nobody. Every single moogle there had to escape to different another world to seek refugee. I think we were supposed to all go to the same place. But somehow I lost my crowd and end up here. I have lost my older brother Mog, my only family, kupo," Moogly explained. Sora and Roxas nodded sympathetically as they listened. Moogly continued. "When I was asking for directions from the two boys and a girl who was here before, they said they couldn't hear me. They spoke in a very loud voice. I was scared so I cried, kupo."

Sora and Roxas exchanged worried glances. The situation with the Neo Nobody was worse than they thought. "Have you looked around Twilight Town for your brother?" Sora asked. Moogly nodded its little head, looking down at its feet.

"You looked everywhere?" Roxas asked. Moogly nodded again.

"Hey, why don't you come with us?" Sora suggested, giving Moogly a warm smile. "We are travelling to other worlds to find people as well. From what we know, a lot of refugees go to Radiant Garden. May be you'll find Mog there."

"Good idea," Roxas agreed. "What do you think, Moogly?"

Moogly looked at Roxas and turned its head to look at Sora. Finally, he returned a small smile. "Yes, I will be very grateful if you let me go with you, kupo."

With that settled, Sora and Roxas hurried their way to Central Station with Moogly trotting behind. They had already spent too much valuable time in Twilight Town. They needed to catch up the time they lost. Roxas offered his shoulder for Moogly to hang on so it didn't need to run like its life depended on it. But Moogly insisted it could catch up to them.

When they arrived at the ticket booth, Sora dug into his pocket for munny. Running past him, Roxas reminded Sora they didn't need tickets to get on the train leaving for the Tower. Feeling silly, Sora's found something that was not munny in his pocket. It felt paper-like. He pulled it out. It was a photo – a photo of Hayner, Pence, Olette and Roxas that he received from Riku. It wasn't like Sora never washed his clothes. Sora always kept the photo close to him. When Riku and Kairi asked him why, he didn't understand either. But his heart told him it was something very important.

Walking up to his two companions, Sora gave Roxas the photo. "It is yours, isn't it," he said.

Roxas took the photo. His mouth opened a little when he saw properly what it was.

"Don't you want to see them?" Sora asked, referring to Hayner, Pence and Olette. From the moment he stepped foot on Twilight Town, he wanted to leave for the Tower to find Yen Sid more than anything else. But Sora believed Roxas wanted to see his friends. Roxas, who might disappear who-knows-when, might not have another chance.

"They don't even know me, Sora," Roxas said quietly. "I wasn't their friend. It was their virtual self whom I met."

"That's not true," Sora protested. "When I first met them, they said to me that they felt like they knew me. When Donald, Goofy and I were leaving for the Tower for sorcerer Yensid, Hayner, Pence and Olette bid us farewell right here at the station. At that time, I cried for no reason. No, it wasn't me who cried. It was you, wasn't it, Roxas."

Roxas's didn't look up from the photo. He said nothing.

Speaking of the devils, they saw Hayner and Olette came running towards them. Roxas quickly shoved the photo in his pocket.

"Hey Sora!" Hayner greeted the brown hair teenager while huffing and puffing at the same time. "Why didn't you tell us you're here?"

Panting and recovering from the run, Olette said. "Seifer told us you are in Twilight town." Her dark brown hair was a little messy.

"Sorry, I'm in a hurry again," Sora apologised.

"Oh, this is…?" Having noticed Roxas' presence, Olette asked.

Sora shot Roxas a nervous glance. "I almost forgot to introduce. This is my friend, Roxas," Sora said. Hayner and Olette each said hello to Roxas, who looked like he had an ant crawling up his back.

Feeling as uneasy as Roxas, Sora changed the topic. "Where is Pence?" he looked around for any signs of the bandana teen.

"You'll know in a minute," Olette winked. "Look, here he comes."

Pence came running up to them, carrying several Sea Salt iceblocks in his arms. "Quickly, before they melt!" the chubby teenager gave Sora, Olette, Hayner and himself each a blue iceblock. There was one left.

"You bought one too many," Hayner said.

"Oops," Pence scratched his head. "I was sure I got the right number of people."

"It's just right. Roxas can have one," Olette said, taking the last unopened iceblock from Pence and offered it to Roxas.

Roxas was taken back, but only for a split second. "Thank you," he took the Sea Salt iceblock. He looked down to Moogly. "Do you want to share it with me?" he asked the moogle. Moogly thanked him but refused the offer. It told him it couldn't eat salty food. Removing the paper wrapper, Roxas took a bite of the iceblock. It tasted as salty as seawater at first, and then slowly changed to a sweet flavour.

"How is it?" asked a smiling Olette.

Roxas returned a smile, "It's nice."

When they finished the iceblocks, Sora apologised once more, saying they really need to be on their way. Hayner, Pence and Olette showed concern when he explained to them Riku and Kairi might be in danger. Sora, Roxas and Moogly stepped into the magical purple train with only one carriage.

"Bye, " Hayner said to them. "Come back here with Riku and Kairi next time."

"Please come again soon, Sora," Pence said, waving to the three of them. "Please come along too, Roxas."

"We will," Sora waved back to them, just before the train door shut.

They were the only passengers on the train. They travelled for some time in silence. Roxas took out the photo in his pocket and stared at it. Moogly fell asleep on the soft and comfortable passenger seat. Sora couldn't help but think about Goofy and Donald. He missed them terribly. He wondered if they were safe. Wanting to distract himself, Sora looked out the train's window. The train wasn't running on railroad anymore. It was running in mid-air. The world was pitch dark outside when they first got on. Now a pinkish glow was emerging from the darkness. It would be daybreak soon. Sora glanced over to Roxas, who was still staring at the picture. He didn't seem to have moved an inch in the last hour. It made Sora felt guilty to think about his friends. He had his friends in the heart and his friends had him in the heart. They were always there with him. Roxas, in comparison, didn't have a place in his friends' hearts.

"Roxas," Sora sat beside the blonde hair teenager.

Roxas turned his head to face him. "Yeah?"

"You know I defeated the twelve members of Organisation XIII. Were there…were there any of your friends amongst them?" Sora asked.

Roxas stared out the window on the opposite side of the carriage. "There weren't anyone in the organisation who I'll call friends," he paused. "May be except one person."

"Axel?" Sora asked, remembering the last moments of the master of fire amongst Nobody.

"I didn't realise that until the end. That idiot, he knew he'd die if he used that technique," Roxas smiled sadly.

"He must've known that helping me was the same as helping you," Sora said earnestly. "He really wanted to meet you."

"I know. I heard him through you," Roxas said. They didn't speak again until they reached the Tower.

Once landed in the garden, they were greeted by a number of Heartless and Neo Nobody. Scrooping up Moogly with an arm, Roxas placed into the hood of Sora's jacket. Sora didn't have a chance to complain when he saw the number of enemies that had them surrounded. He brought forth Ultima weapon whereas Oathkeeper and Oblivion chose to be wield by Roxas. They were quick to eliminate all the Neo Nobody first before they could open their mouths to let out the lethal screech. They were lucky because there were much fewer of them than the Heartless. Moogly hang firmly onto Sora's jacket, its eyes squeezed tight.

The door of the Tower opened the moment Roxas finished off the last Heartless. It was sorcerer Yen Sid who stepped out from inside.

"Yen Sid!" Sora ran up to the sorcerer, glad that they didn't need to run up ten floors to see him.

"Sorcerer Yen Sid it is," Yensid corrected him, his face stern as usual.

Sora stuck his tongue out and made a face. "How did you know we're here?"

"I know things through all sorts of ways, Sora. I know why you are here too," Yensid answered. "Unfortunately, I don't know where Riku and Kairi are; nor do I know why there are these new Nobody around." Sora and Roxas looked disappointed. "However," Yen Sid continued. "I can tell you that this new enemy is related to Xemnas."

"He's alive?" Roxas asked, looking anxious.

"No. Sora rid of the world of him a month ago, but not his creations. I'm afraid I don't know much more than that," Yen Sid explained. "Putting that aside, if I'm not wrong; I believe you three need a gummi ship."

"You don't happen to have one, do you Yen- I mean, Sorcerer Yen Sid," Sora winced.

"It happens I do have one. How else do you think I do my shopping?" Yensid smiled and pointed to the direction behind Sora, Roxas and Moogly. The sorcerer waved his hand in a magical manner. Then, an odd-looking gummi ship in the shape of a magician's hat came floating up from the edge of the island until it was just the right height to climb in. It was considerably smaller than the gummi ship Donald and Goofy had. "Unfortunately, it only has enough fuel to go as far as Radiant Garden."

Delighted, Sora thanked the sorcerer. "That'd be fine. We can refuel there." Then a frown spread across his face, replacing his happy face. "But I don't know how to pilot a gummi ship. Do you, Roxas?" Roxas shook his head.

"I do," said Moogly, still sitting inside Sora's hood. "Moogly is good at piloting, kupo." Sora and Roxas couldn't be more glad that they brought the little moogle along.

The three scrambled into the small gummi ship. The ship was originally made for one person. So Sora and Roxas had to squeeze into the luggage space behind the pilot seat. When Sora asked Yen Sid to go with them, the sorcerer refused. He explained he wanted to remain in the Tower so anyone in need could always find him there. Reluctantly, Sora, Roxas and Moogly left for Radiant Garden.

* * *

Author's rambling: Thank you so much for those who took time to write reviews. They are very much appreciated. Any comments are welcome, whether they are thoughts about the chapters, thoughts about the characters or constructive criticism. It doesn't matter how long or short the comment is.

I do apologise for any confusion of names (characters, weapons, places) that arised in the story. Please yell out if I get any wrong. I have to admit I only played the Japanese version of KH2. When I decided to write this, I had to go to sites to search for names in English. Not that the Japanese names were very different, just to check for correct spelling.


	4. Chapter 4

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 4: Doubt

The drive from the Tower to Radiant Garden was relatively smooth. Sora had long gotten used to seeing the incredible amount of Heartless trying to take down their ship every time they travelled between worlds. Moogly's piloting skills seemed to be just as good as Chip and Dale's. The luggage compartment wasn't the most comfortable place to sit and it was certainly not roomy, but it wasn't too bad because it was just right behind the driver's seat. So Sora and Roxas could see clearly what was up ahead.

Their gummi ship was the only one at the ship port. Sora was half hoping to see Donald and Goofy's gummi ship there. The three of them experienced more trouble getting out of the gummi ship than battling the Heartless in space.

"You're stepping on my foot!" Sora yelled to Roxas, both of them trying to get off at the same time. Moogly had already jumped out and was looking back at those two.

"You just elbowed me!" Roxas yelled back. "Let me get off first, I'm closer."

"I can't unless you stop wriggling," muttered Sora, doing his best to squeeze out of Roxas' way in the tiny luggage compartment.

They managed to scuffle their way out eventually. Approaching footsteps sent Moogly hiding behind Sora. It was the self-proclaimed, great ninja Yuffie.

"Hey Sora!" Yuffie called out as soon as she saw the three. "I was wondering who could be inside that giant homed crab gummi ship."

Not bothering to argue with her that it was in fact a magician hat, Sora decided to ask the more important question. "What's the situation here, Yuffie?"

"Situation?" Yuffie raised an eyebrow, waiting for Sora's elaboration.

Sora scanned their surrounding. There weren't any enemies around. A thought occurred to Sora. Perhaps the NeoNobdy hadn't reach Radiant Garden yet. "Like, um, did anything unusual happen lately?"

Tapping her chin with a finger, Yuffie tried to think. "Come to think about it, the other day a whole lot of moogles arrived here. There were so many of them I thought it was an invasion!" she laughed. "They mentioned something about being attacked by a new kind of Nobody. Anyway, why are we still standing here? Come one, let's go to Merlin's place. Everyone's there."

Together they walked to Merlin's house. On the way, they ran into Scrooge, Donald's three nephews and Cloud. Sora said hello to them as he walked past them. He was glad they didn't ask who Roxas was. Cloud's eyes set on Roxas for a moment and walked away.

Yuffie pushed open the familiar wooden door and entered casually. "Hi I'm back!" she announced. "Hey Cid, look who's here!" As usual, Cid was sitting in front of his computer monitors, working on some programs. Sora didn't recall a time Cid wasn't sitting at the exact same spot whenever he came to visit.

Dislike being disrupted while working, the shorthaired mechanic turned around impatiently. A smile spread across his face when he saw Sora. "Hey kid, remembered to come see us at last?" Cid greeted, with a cigarette hanging at the corner of his mouth.

Decided he wouldn't correct Cid for calling him 'kid' for this time, Sora asked him a favour instead. He asked the mechanic to refuel Yen Sid's gummi ship for him, stating it was urgent. Cid grumbled and mumbled but went ahead with Sora's request. Before leaving, he asked Aerith to tell him things that he missed when he gets back. Moogly went outside along with Cid to help refuel and service the ship. Sora was glad that Moogly found his friends kind enough to no longer be afraid of them.

Everything was the same at Merlin's place. The Pooh picture book sat quietly on the shelf, looking a little lonesome. Aerith and Merlin were happy to see him. Leon returned from patrolling when Aerith went to make them some tea. The brown-hair gunblade master was surprised but nonetheless pleased to see Sora. When asked who Roxas was, Sora told them he was a friend from Destiny Islands. For some reason, he didn't feel comfortable telling the others he had a Nobody travelling with him. He didn't want to make the others worry.

Those of Radiant Garden and Roxas took a seat each. Standing up, Sora explained why they were here at Radiant Garden and what happened on Destiny Islands. He was careful to leave out the parts that would give Roxas away as his own Nobody. Roxas listened without saying a thing.

When Sora finished, Leon, Aerith and Merlin were all in deep thought.

Eventually, Leon spoke up. "So you're saying, those NeoNobody may be up to something, and you have to get to the King as soon as possible?"

"That's right," Sora replied.

"How did you know they were called NeoNobody?" asked Leon, a small frown showing on his handsome face.

"Um, well I…" Sora staggered, unsure of what to say. If he answered, Leon would find out about Roxas.

Aerith was next. "How did you make all the Nobody fight against the NeoNobody?" Her voice was gentle, yet demanding at the same time.

"And also, young man," Merlin began. "Why would you take with you a friend who can't fight against our enemies?"

Letting out a small snicker, Roxas rose from his seat. "It's not going to work, Sora. Your story had too many things that didn't make sense." He stood beside Sora, facing the listeners. "I'm Sora's Nobody." Yuffie gasped. Merlin stopped fidgeting his long beard. Leon's frown deepened. The only person who didn't react was Aerith, whose calm expression remained.

"I see," Merlin began to stroke his grey beard again. "It all makes sense now."

Leon stood up. "Sora, I need to talk to you." He dragged Sora outside the house before the brown-hair teenager could protest.

Roxas didn't like Leon's eyes. They shimmered with suspicion. He could guess what Leon would say to Sora and it certainly wouldn't be praise of any kind. Aerith stood in Roxas' way when he was going after the two. "I need to talk to you too, Roxas," she said, smiling.

"What is it, Leon?" Sora was finally able to ask when they went as far as the dark stone stairs that lead to the bailey.

"Did he tell you why he's helping you?" Leon asked.

Sora had to think for a second to realise he was talking about Roxas. It was something Sora hadn't thought about. "No," he admitted. "Why?"

"So you didn't ask him either?" Leon asked again, ignoring Sora's question. Sora shook his head. "Why do you think he helps you, then?"

"Because…he's my Nobody?" Sora suggested unsurely, hoping Leon would be happy with the answer; though he thought it was more likely he wouldn't.

"You said it, Sora. He's a Nobody. What have we been fighting all this time? Heartless and Nobody. No matter whose Nobody it is, a Nobody is a Nobody," Leon crossed his arms.

"But Roxas helped me all the way up to here. He even told the Nobody to fight against NeoNobody. He's doing this for us," Sora argued.

Shaking his head, Leon sighed. "You're too trusting, Sora. He's a Nobody. Before this, he needed you because he didn't have a physical form. Now that he does, he doesn't have any reason to help you. Also, he's very unstable. Remember how all the Organisation members disappear after they are defeated? If he is defeated, you'll lose half of your powers, Sora."

Deep inside his heart, Sora knew that Leon's intentions were always genuine. While half of him wanted to believe him, the other half of him was uncertain.

"All I want to say is – beware of him," Leon said.

By the time they were back at Merlin's house, Cid had already finished servicing and refuelling Yen Sid's gummi ship for them. From Cid they found out the ship was called Magus Hat. Moogly was told that Mog went to other worlds to look for his missing little brother. So the little moogle decided to continue travelling with Sora and Roxas until he reunited with Mog. Sora didn't want to delay his trip to Disney Castle any longer. Therefore, he told Cid and the others they would leave right away. Leon, Aerith, Yuffie and Cid watched as they aboard the gummi ship. Sora bid them farewell from the ship.

"Believe in yourself, Sora. More importantly, believe in your heart," Aerith said to Sora, just before the top of the gummi ship closed down to prepare for take off. Magus Hat sour into the sky like a clone-shaped bullet. His friends gradually became smaller and smaller as the distance grew until they were tiny black dots.

Sora wondered what Aerith meant. He made a mental note that he would ask the next time they met. Roxas sat quietly beside him, looking out the window.

"What did Aerith said to you?" Sora asked, breaking the silence.

Roxas turned around until their identical blue eyes met. "What did Leon said to you?" he asked back.

"Hey I asked you first," Sora protested. Dealing with his own Nobody wasn't as easy as he thought.

"I'll tell you if you tell me," shrugged Roxas. Neither of them gave way to the other. Moogly fought off some assaulting Heartless on the way. The rest of the way was rather uneventful. After a while of watching the same scenery of the space outside the window, Sora's eyelids gradually grew heavier. The times in all the worlds were different. Sora didn't keep track of time from the beginning and had no idea how long he'd been awake for. His body had long been telling him to get some rest. Slowly, he drifted off to sleep.

Sora woke up with a start only to find himself hanging upside down. Like Sora, Roxas was pushing himself from the ship's top with both hands. Moogly had flipped the belly of the ship to avoid a dozens of needle-like beam attacks.

"What's going on Moogly?" Sora cried.

"We're under vicious attack, kupo!" Moogly answered, flipping the ship back to the right position.

Disney Castle was clearly visible from where they were. They were very near their destination. An incredible number of NeoNobody were preventing them from landing. Moogly zoomed pass some more NeoNobody until they were circling above the castle. The home of Mickey, Donald and Goofy took quite a bad hit. A couple of towers of the castle were demolished. Almost all of the neatly kept Disney green hedges in the garden were gone. The front gate of the castle had a huge round hole in it. The once grand castle was infiltrated by crawling NeoNobody. Sora watched in horror, fearing for his friends.

"Moogly, stop circling around - just land!" Roxas yelled, getting dizzy from zooming back and forth and flipping upside down every minute. Seeing it wasn't a time it could land gracefully at a gummi ship port, Moogly steered the ship downwards. They braced from impact as the ship crash-landed. After experiencing shakes and bumps that seemed to last forever, they eventually skid to a stop.

The ship's top sprung open, allowing Sora to climb out. Underestimated the dizziness caused by the rough landing, Sora almost stumbled forward and had to use the ship to support himself. Roxas too had to shake his head to clear the dizziness. Moogly landed them right in front of the castle. They were not alone. Surrounding them were all kinds of NeoNobody – some were on the ground and some flying.

Oathkeeper and Oblivion materialised in Roxas' hands. He fought off a few of NeoNobody that were so close they were threatening. "What now?" Roxas glanced over to Sora, who was cleaning those his side.

Before Sora could answer, a familiar voice called out. "Blizzaga!" It sounded more like a quack. A group of NeoNobody a little further away from Sora froze into solid ice. An angry-looking duck in blue sailor outfit was running over with a magic staff in hand. Following him was an odd-looking dog in green top and yellow pants, who was holding a round shield.

"Donald, Goofy!" Sora called back in delight, turning around temporarily only to strike a couple of NeoNobdy that was leaping towards him. He almost had to hold back tears. There was nothing more wonderful than seeing those two unharmed. "Where is the King?" Sora asked as soon as Donald and Goofy reached him and Roxas.

"There's no time to talk, Sora. Hurry up and get into the castle quickly!" Donald said, aiming the Firaga magic at a group of closing in NeoNobody.

"The King is safe," Goofy told him.

Donald jumped up and down. "Hurry!" he repeated. The five of them ran for the castle's gate, clearing out a path on their way. After taking some short cuts, they arrived at the familiar colonnade. No longer was it majestic as it once was. Fractures and burnt holes filled the place. Sora's heart ached at the sight. They ran past the audience chamber and entered the library. Inside, the King, the Queen and Daisy were waiting for them. The Queen and Daisy were sitting on chairs with what Sora thought was a seat belt strapped across their upper body.

"Good job, Donald, Goofy," King Mickey greeted them with a warm smile. "Thank you for making here in time, Sora," he winked to Sora, who was confused.

"Chip and Dale, ready to launch!" Mickey called through a speaker. The two squirrels replied with a chirp. A second later, the library began to shake ferociously. Sora found something to hold onto to stop himself from bumping into others. To his amazement, the library rose and detached from the castle. It was a large-sized gummi ship. The library whooped down to the front of the castle to pick up the whacked Magus Hat. It then charged into the wide-open space until Disney Castle became nothing but a dot.

* * *

Author's rambling: Finally they're at the Disney Castle (well, left it at the end of the chapter)! I wanted them to arrive earlier but felt the detours were neccessary. Can't really expect Sora to just refuel and leave Radiant Garden without saying anything to Leon and co, right? And yes I did rewrite the summary for the third time. I'll keep rewriting until I'm happy with it. Argh I do suck at writing these two-sentence summaries. Please review! I live on reviews  



	5. Chapter 5

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 5: Threat

Being on board of the gummi ship that used to be the King's library was a less shaky experience when it ceased acceleration. The ship stabilised and switched to automatic pilot mode. Chip and Dale were inside the tiny main control room so no one could see them. Bookshelves lowered, revealing windows through which they could see the outside. All that happened within a couple of minutes. Only moments ago, Sora and his friends were at Disney Castle but now they were very far from it. Sora couldn't wait another second longer to find out what was happening. One thing for sure was the situation was bad enough for the King to flee his castle. "What are you doing King Mickey? Why did we leave Disney Castle?"

Removing his glance from the scenery outside, King Mickey looked up to Sora with a serious face. "There is a lot that I have to tell you. Here, take a seat," the King gestured Sora and Roxas to take a seat around the table where Queen Minnie and Daisy sat. Goofy and Donald were also asked to join them. Perhaps the King felt Moogly didn't need to be involved with the complicated issues he was about to discuss, he politely asked the little moogle to help with repairs down in the engine level. Moogly was happy to be of help. Pluto offered Moogly to ride on his back and they both took the stairs down.

"This young man is?" King Mickey asked once they sat down, acknowledging Roxas' presence. The few motional broomsticks on the ship delivered tea to everyone.

"I'm Roxas, Sora's Nobody," Roxas answered simply without hesitation. Everyone except the King gasped. Sora began recounting the story again, starting from when him, Riku and Kairi were attacked by NeoNobody. He told the King everything except the warning from Leon. Roxas shot him a look, daring Sora to tell the conversation with Leon. Sora ignored him.

"Thank you, Sora," the King nodded to Sora. He turned to Roxas. "Please to meet you, Roxas," the King said with a friendly smile. It made Roxas felt more relaxed and welcomed around the King than back in Radiant Garden.

When he finished his side of the story, Sora was eager to find out what the King knew. "Your majesty, can you please tell us why we have to desert Disney Castle? It is your home, isn't it? The Light is back there too. Also, how did you know we were coming?"

The King closed his eyes and sighed. "About how I knew you were coming, well, I wasn't completely sure. I didn't send Chip and Dale to look for you in case you may miss each other on the way. But I have faith in you. I know you'll try to find a way here if you run into the NeoNobody. So I waited. If you didn't come in time, we would still abandon the castle. There were too many NeoNobody back there. We had to. Fortunately no one was hurt, for that I am grateful. The Light is safe on this ship. As long as we have the Light, we can always rebuild the castle."

"But Your Ma-"

King Mickey cut off Sora. "The castle is something we can always rebuild, but life isn't. People come before everything else, Sora. The reason why we attracted so many of them was because I have the Kingdom Hearts. I have it right here on this ship."

"What!" Sora couldn't believe his ears. The last time he saw Kingdom Hearts was back at World That Never Was. When he thought about it, he couldn't remember seeing it when he went there with Roxas on the previous day. "But why?"

Taking a deep breath, King Mickey began to recall his story.

After defeating Xemnas, King Mickey returned to The World That Never Was. Knowing that Xehanort was a great researcher and scientist before he turned into a Heartless, the King suspected that his Nobody Xemnas might too have been a researcher, since one of Organisation XIII's purposes was to understand how the heart works. King Mickey flipped over every rock of the world of Nobody to make sure he didn't miss any spot. Even without the white castle of the organisation, The World That Never Was was still a big place. It took him two weeks to discover the existence of Xemna's underground laboratory. It was very well hidden. King Mickey didn't know exactly why the laboratory was outside the organisation's headquarters; perhaps Xemnas felt it was safer to hide it in town.

There was an incredible amount of reports and experiment results archived in the laboratory, stored on computer as well as paper. King Mickey spent another week going through all the data. It was seven days ago that he found a document titled Project Omega.

After the defeat of Vexen, Lexacus, Zexion, Larxene and Marluxia in Castle Oblivion, the head of Organisation XIII realised the need to prevent further corruption within the organisation. He needed a more powerful army that was stronger than the Nobody and would listen to every order he gave. Prior to that, he already unravelled the makeup of the soul and the body. It was the heart that he was never able to fully understand. He found a way to create a new kind of Nobody that had an ability that original Nobody didn't have. They were NeoNobody. By using Soul Shatter, NeoNobody could produce more Nobody by splitting up the three elements that made up a being – the body, soul and heart. Whilst the heart would turn what was darkness left of the being to a Heartless, the left behind body and soul would give birth to a new Nobody. It was Xemna's intention that shall all the members of Organisation XIII fail; Nobody will follow orders from the NeoNobody without resistance. Obviously, it was beyond Xemnas' prediction that Roxas would return and command his army of Nobody to eliminate the NeoNobody.

Omega and the NeoNobody had been given the same order – the retrieve Kingdom Hearts and eliminate all obstacles in the way. In order to achieve that goal, Xemnas input certain commands that would only execute under certain conditions. Omega was programmed to activate automatically shall Xemnas not give it new orders within a month's time. Riku and Kairi were mentioned in his plans, but he didn't give much detail about what he intended to do to them. He also made notes about producing replicas of the organisation's members, again not much information other than that was found.

As soon as King Mickey found out about Xemnas' backup plan, he brought Kingdom Hearts back to Disney Castle; even knowing it would attract Heartless, Nobody and worst of all – the NeoNobody. The Kingdom Hearts was hurt in the last battle. If proper care was not given, the balance between light and dark would be lost. King Mickey wouldn't allow it to fall into NeoNobody's hands either. Therefore he wrote a letter to Sora to invite him and his friends to discuss this matter. He didn't think the NeoNobody was this quick to carry out orders.

"You got to be kidding me your majesty!" Sora exclaimed. He couldn't image having to fight all those powerful Organisation XIII members again.

"Are we going to where Omega is right now? To destroy it?" Roxas asked.

King Mickey nodded. "Yes. However, Xemnas was cunning. He predicted his plans might be uncovered. So he made two hoax of Omega and put the three machines in three different dead worlds. We need locate the real Omega as soon as possible."

"But what about Riku and Kairi?" Sora couldn't believe the King still hadn't talked about rescuing them.

"Gawrsh, calm down Sora," Goofy said.

"How can I?" Sora yelled, slamming his fist onto the table, making all the teacups jump. Five pair of widened eyes stared at him. He muttered an apology.

King Mickey put a reassuring hand on the teenager's shoulder. "Sora, I suspect Riku and Kairi might have been taken to where Omega is. There is a high chance of finding them there. The most important thing now is for us to destroy Omega to stop it from making more NeoNobody. If we don't, we will all be turned into Heartless and Nobody."

"By the way, why weren't you affected by Soul Shatter? There must've been a thousand NeoNobody back at your castle," Roxas pointed out.

"That is not the way to address the King, boy!" Donald let out a frustrated quack, looking rather crossed. He could no longer tolerate Roxas not addressing King Mickey in the correct manner.

"Oh sorry, King Mickey," Roxas said, putting a hand behind his head.

"It's 'your majesty'!" Donald jumped up from his seat. Goofy was quick to refrain him from jumping onto Roxas.

King Mickey gestured Donald to stop. "Ah, thanks for bring that up, Roxas. I only discovered it when the day the NeoNobody came to my castle. I was worried about the Light, so I checked out on it. I noticed the NeoNobody didn't get close to the Light, like they were afraid of it. We will be safe as long as it is close to us."

He went over to the control panel and pressed a few buttons. A hatch opened up in the middle of the room, bringing up the Light from below. King Mickey asked Sora to touch it. Sora walked up to the giant glowing sphere and put a hand over it. It was so bright it was blinding. He closed his eyes. A warm sensation reached out to him, wrapping around his body like a soft feather blanket. When he opened his eyes again, he felt calm and refresh.

"Sora, you're glowing!" Donald remarked. He was right. A soft golden glow was emitting from Sora's body. The King told them the Light could protect them from NeoNobody's Soul Shatter as long as the glow remained. However, it wouldn't last forever.

When it was Roxas' turn to touch the Light, Donald pulled Sora to a corner. Goofy joined them out of curiosity.

"Sora, what are you thinking! We can't trust that Roxas boy. He's a Nobody," Donald put his hands on his hips. He wasn't happy.

"Gawrsh Donald, it's not nice to suspect our friends," Goofy said.

Folding his arms, Donald shot Goofy a glare. "He's not our friend!"

Goofy shrugged. "If he is Sora's friend; he's our friend too, right?"

"Thanks, Goofy. I don't think Roxas is bad. He helped me a lot. If it weren't him, I wouldn't have made it here so quickly. I was once a Heartless for a very short time too. Besides, I didn't have to fight alone like I did in Castle Oblivion, when you guys couldn't help me directly," Sora said.

"Castle Oblivion?" Donald raised an eyebrow. "We never went to such a place."

"Huh?" Sora gave Goofy a puzzle look, hoping for back up from him.

"I have never heard of such a place either, Sora," Goofy said with worry written over his face.

At that moment, King Mickey called them to gather around the table. He explained the plans he had in mind. Since there were three worlds where Omega could be hidden, they needed to split into three teams to try to find the real one. Donald and Goofy were put into team A. Sora and Roxas were put into team B. The King intended to make up team C by himself. Donald protested against the King's solitary action and Sora getting teamed up with Roxas. King Mickey refused to reorganise the teams, saying they must find Omega as quickly as they could or else the world would be in greater danger than it had ever been.

Growing impatient of Donald's constant complains, Sora couldn't hold back anymore. "Donald, we can't waste any more time. We need to save Riku and…" he stopped in mid-sentence, perplexed. "Riku and… huh?"

"What's wrong, Sora?" a concerned King Mickey asked.

"It's Kairi, " Roxas reminded Sora.

"Of course. Riku and Kairi. How and I ever forget?" Sora laughed, but he was confused. For some reason, Kairi's name didn't come to him when he tried to recall it.

Roxas could sense that something was not right. It was his connection with Sora that enabled him to feel certain changes in Sora. He spotted a group photo of King Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Riku, Kairi and Sora, hanging in a frame on the opposite wall. He asked the King if he could borrow it. The King said yes. He lowered his voice and asked Roxas to look out for Sora. Roxas promised he would.

Together they made their way downstairs to the departure level. The gummi ship's name was Royal Library. It had three floors: the top being the control and navigation level, the middle contained two rooms, a kitchen and a lounge, the bottom floor was the engine room. Chip and Dale worked very hard to repair Magus Hat to a flyable condition. Before they went, King Mickey gave every team a long-distance communication device. It was a silver badge in the shape of a crown. There was a mini speaker and a receiver inside the badge. Sora pinned it onto his jacket. He was told that once one of the team found Omega, the other two teams should meet up with the founder team. The King asked for no one to touch Omega until they meet up to work out what to do together.

After saying goodbye, the three teams headed off to different directions. Donald and Goofy took their old gummi ship. The King took the Royal Library. Sora and Roxas boarded Magus Hat, which was pilot by Moogly.

Their destination was already set for them. It was a dead world called Black Cosmos. Even with the newly installed turbo engine, the computer estimated it would still take them two hours to get there.

Sora felt a little disappointed about the short reunion with his friends. He wished he could be with them for a little longer. Not that he didn't understand how important their mission was; he couldn't help it. It was partly due to the bad feeling he had about what was ahead. He remembered something back a little while ago.

"Roxas," Sora asked his shadow counterpart who sat next to him. "Do you know about Castle Oblivion?"

"Castle Oblivion?" Roxas gave a slight frown. "I've been there a few times. It was one of the Organisation's subsidiaries. I wasn't stationed there though. Why?"

"Have I been there?" Sora pointed at himself.

Roxas shrugged. "You're asking me. How would I-" he paused to think. "Wait, I've heard you have from Axel." Roxas thought it was strange. Sora wasn't supposed to remember about Castle Oblivion. He heard that Namine erased all the memories in Sora of him being there. Namine was Kairi's Nobody. She was unknown to Kairi and got lost and helpless. No one cared for her. The organisation used her as a tool to lure Sora. Namine wanted Sora's attention so badly she used her power to put herself in Kairi's place, so Sora would stay with her. Doing so she replaced Sora's memories with fake ones she created. At the end, she realised what she did was wrong. She erased all Sora's memory of Castle Oblivion and restored his true memories.

It wasn't surprise to Roxas if Namine parted from Kairi after enduring the Soul Shatter on Destiny Islands. But he suspected Namine was meddling with Sora's memories again. He couldn't guess why she would. The most likely cause was perhaps she was captured and forced to.

It took them exactly two hours to reach Black Cosmos. Although none of them knew how the world was before it died, but it was certainly very dark and gloomy, just like its name suggested. Fallen buildings and craters covered the planet's surface. There was no sign of life or movement on there. Sora, Roxas and Moogly began to wonder if Omega could possibly be there. The ship landed gently, like a dragonfly on a lily leaf.

* * *

Author's rambling: There is quite a lot of explanation in this chapter. I hope I've covered everything I wanted at this point and it all makes sense. On the other hand, not much action in this chapter. But there will be in the next one. Review and review! They really make my day. 


	6. Chapter 6

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 6: His Nobody

After landing, Moogly checked for any poisonous substance in the planet's atmosphere. The air was indicated to be good enough to breathe in. One after the other, Sora and Roxas alighted. They both decided it was better for Moogly to stay behind. Partly because they knew nothing of the planet, partly because they didn't feel it was necessary for Moogly to take the risk. Magus Hat could turn invisible when stationary so their little friend would be safe.

Sora took a good look at the part of the Black Cosmos where they stood. They were at a small clearing that could have been a vacant lot or a park before the planet died. About five minutes walk away was a cluster of apartment-height buildings. At the back of those constructions was what appeared to be the central business district. This world was similar to the world where Sora grew up. Roxas, too, could draw resemblance between this place and The World That Never Was.

A huge blue moon hung over the night sky. Everything looked a little paler because of it. Though it did provide them sufficient light to see what was around. They began to head towards the direction of the apartment-height buildings they saw earlier. The town was very quiet. Their footsteps were seemed to be the only noise on the entire planet. As they got closer, they found themselves on a main road. Broken cars, fallen light poles and tipped over rubbish bins scattered as though the city had visits from several tornados. Many windows were broken and doors left ajar. Sora approached a building and gave a light push on the nearest door. It opened with a creak. Inside, there was an overturned table and a few broken chairs beside it.

Roxas suggested they should start looking for Omega. That was when they realised neither of them knew what it looked like. Having no choice, they used the communicative device to contact the King. King Mickey told them that Xemnas left many different designs of Omega in his file. However, Xemnas didn't specify which one was used or whether he used any of them at all. In another words, they were left with using their own imagination on the machine's appearance. Not entirely happy with the news, Sora and Roxas decided it would probably look exotic enough to be recognised upon first sight. They searched buildings after buildings but saw pretty much the same things everywhere. Sora found it odd they hadn't run into any dead bodies yet.

A couple of hours went by and they found nothing. They returned to the main road and began to follow it to the city centre. There was still a fair way to go before they were anywhere near it. Though the town was deserted, Sora kept on glancing at every dark corner they walked pass. There was an uncomfortable feeling in his heart that was bothering him. He almost jumped when Roxas suddenly called him.

"What?" Sora asked, putting a hand over where his heart was.

"You were scared?" Roxas smirked with an amused look on his face. Where he came from, The World That Never Was, was always nighttime and infiltrated by Heartless. He was forced to be alert around the clock. So it wasn't as tiring for him to stay on guard for so long as it was for Sora.

"No way," Sora replied. He didn't understand why he was so wary. He too had been fighting Heartless and Nobody for years. It wasn't something new to him. Perhaps it was because his usual sidekicks Donald and Goofy were there. Perhaps it was the new enemies. But something deep inside him said it was for another reason.

"Anyway, I just want to make sure of something," Roxas wiped off the smirk and looked at Sora seriously. "What are the names of the two friends you're looking for?"

Sora rolled his eyes. "Easy. It's Riku and…" He scratched his head and thought hard. Nothing came to his mind. No name. No face. He was beginning to doubt if he was really looking for anyone else other than Riku.

"It's Kairi. You can't forget about her," Roxas took out the photo he borrowed from the King and handed it to Sora. "See? The girl with red hair is Kairi. There's her name written on the back." He turned the photo around to let Sora read.

Sora was confused. He could almost swear he never saw the girl in the photo in his whole entire life. "Do I really know her? I can't remember a thing of this girl."

Things were going from bad to terrible. Sora had forgotten about Kairi and Roxas could be the one Sora forgets next. He didn't want to imagine what it'd be like if Sora thought he was just any Nobody and start to treat him as an enemy. Fighting against himself sounded ridiculous enough. Roxas realised they desperately needed to find Namine. Unfortunately the chances of finding her on this planet was slimmer than paper. "Sora, get a grip. Listen, she and Riku are the reason we've crossed half the universe to get here," Roxas tried to explain. He began to feel hopeless – how could he explain when he didn't even understand?

At that moment, Roxas heard footsteps coming from ahead. He knew it wasn't NeoNobody because they could appear close to them and attack without warning. The thing coming had a human form. As the figure drew closer, Roxas could make out who it was. His jaw almost dropped to the ground.

It was Kairi.

"Sora, Roxas!" Kairi called out to them. When she came close enough, she threw her arms around Sora, embracing him tightly. Though taken by surprise, Sora didn't want to offend her by pushing her away. He waited for her to let go of him. Kairi was wearing her pink dress, just like how she was when the NeoNobody had her on Destiny Islands. "I'm so glad you two came! I need your help. Riku is hurt," she told them.

Always in the perfect timing, a number of NeoNobody appeared around them, encircling them in the middle. Roxas grunted. His trusting dual keyblades materialised in his hold instantly.

The NeoNobody that surrounded them had round, spiky body with no arms and legs. When they need to move, they withdraw their long spikes to roll back and forth. Roxas didn't need it spelt out to tell they were bigger, stronger and faster than the ones they have encountered so far. "Sora, get out of here with Kairi! I'll handle this," Roxas yelled to Sora, who already summoned his keyblade.

Sora hesitated. Roxas turned around to give him a hurrying nod. Taking Kairi's hand, Sora ran towards the direction of the skyscrapers. "Don't lose, Roxas," he called back.

The NeoNobody came closer to Roxas, who slowly walked backwards to maintain distance. His eyes captured every movement of his enemies. Simultaneously from every direction, the ten NeoNobody bounced up and aimed to where Roxas was. Roxas jumped backwards, causing them to crash into each other. They didn't bounced off each other because they released their spikes thinking they had Roxas. Four of the quicker ones to recover rolled towards him. Having foreseen their actions, Roxas stepped aside the split second before they ran into him. He spun around to position himself behind them and gave them a finishing blow.

Taking advantage of the occupied Roxas, another two shot into the air and aimed for his wide-open back. Roxas sensed them coming so he was able to quickly dodged away. Before they could make their next move, Roxas close in to them and sliced through their round bodies. The remaining four was less cooperative but Roxas wasn't about to underestimate them. It took him a while clear every last one.

There were no more enemies in sight, but Roxas didn't dismiss his keyblades. Someone had been watching him battle from a distance. He scanned the area carefully without missing anything. A hooded figure stood tall and straight on the top of a ten-storey building. When the figure noticed he had been spotted, he jumped down as though the height meant nothing.

The black hood that the unknown figure had on was too familiar to Roxas. It was what the thirteen members of the organisation wore. Roxas used to wear one that was exactly the same. The figure walked towards him. Roxas felt a prickling sensation on his skin. His instincts told him it was a very powerful Nobody. Clenching onto his keyblades, Roxas posed himself to ready for another battle. He feared Omega had successfully made clones of the organisation members. Any one of his past comrades would guarantee to be tough to deal with. The figure was a little shorter than Larxene and a bit taller than Demyx. Roxas caught a glimpse of dark hair under the hood. He couldn't recall any of the twelve members who had dark hair and was of that body height. The figure was definitely a man, but Roxas still couldn't see his face properly with his hood and fringe in the way.

"Who are you?" Roxas asked, lifting up the black Oblivion in his right hand and pointed it at the stranger. The hooded figure stopped on his track. They were about a block apart.

"You are a Nobody, yet you wield the keyblade," the hooded figure said in an unfamiliar voice. It was a youthful voice, though not as young as Sora and Roxas but not as old as Xigbar and Xaldin. His mouth curled up to a smile. "That means you are Sora's Nobody."

It only made Roxas more alert. "Answer my question!" he demanded, glaring at the man. As far as he knew, only beings with strong hearts could retain human shape as Nobody. Xemnas should have recruited all the human-form Nobody to his organisation. That could only mean the one standing before him was a new Nobody.

"Can't you sense who I am?" The man reached for his hood and pulled it down to reveal his face.

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Sora and Kairi didn't come across any NeoNobody on the way. Kairi said they should go to where Riku was. She brought Sora to the tallest skyscraper in the dead city. It was the type of commercial building with mirror exterior. The main entrance slid open automatically as they approached. Sora was surprised there was still electricity. The lobby was unlit. Kairi pressed for the lift and chose a floor. Every time he had a chance, Sora would look at Kairi and try to remember anything he could about her. The girl had sea-blue eyes and red hair past her shoulders. When Sora asked how Riku was. Kairi replied that Riku was in such bad condition he couldn't move. Sora wondered why she didn't just leave Riku at the ground floor, if he was that hurt.

The lift gave a short, crisp ting and opened. Immediately, an immense feeling of the presence of NeoNobody hit Sora like a huge wave. It was pitch-dark beyond the door. Kairi stepped out straight away. "Sora?" she turned around, waiting for him to come out. Sora's instinct was warning him, screaming out danger in his head. He still couldn't remember anything about this girl called Kairi. But he believed what Roxas said was true, that he had only forgotten about her temporarily. Decided to trust Kairi, he stepped out of the lift.

"Where is Riku?" Sora looked around, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. He rubbed his arms for the goosebumps he was getting. He couldn't see anything let alone Riku.

"Just a bit further ahead," Kairi answered, following Sora closely.

Sora took a few more steps forward. Still he saw no Riku. When he was about to turn around to ask Kairi again, he found himself falling into nothingness.

There was no doubt about it. Kairi pushed him down, knowing what was waiting for Sora. As he fell, Sora turned to look upwards. The image of Kairi was gradually fading out. Sora thought he saw Kairi sank to her knees and buried her face into her hands.

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Under the hood was a face of a young man, about two or three years older than Roxas by appearance. His straight long hair was tied back loosely, as though he couldn't be bother spending another few seconds to make it look neat. Strands not long enough to be tied into his low ponytail hang loosely on the sides of his face. His eyes were blue-green. The realisation struck Roxas. There was only one other person in the world who he knew had such clear aqua coloured eyes.

"You're Riku's…" Roxas could hardly believe he was having such absurd thought. Yet it could only be _him_ to derive a human-shaped Nobody. Why hadn't he thought of it before? It was possible. Anyone could become a Nobody. There was no one who could be completely immune. "Where is Riku?" Roxas demanded, eyeing Riku's Nobody distrustfully. Something was bugging him at the back of his mind but he couldn't grasp what it was.

Riku's Nobody smiled. "Riku? You mean his Heartless?"

"You…!" Roxas scowled. Riku was annoying and apparently his Nobody was no less.

"He was still alive the last time I saw him," Riku's Nobody shrugged. "I came here to ask if you would join force with me." Roxas looked at him skeptically but showed he was listening.

"What I want is a heart. We will become complete beings if we acquire a heart each by working together. We can form an alliance," Riku's Nobody said, walking closer to Roxas until they were a table's length apart.

Lowering his keyblade, Roxas tilted his head, eyes narrowed. "How do you think you'll do that? Someone already tried every single method but still he couldn't get a heart of his own." He was beginning to understand what Riku's Nobody was getting at.

"There is still a way that nobody has tried," Riku's Nobody smirked at the mentioning of 'nobody'. "Would you help me?"

Roxas didn't answer. Suddenly an ice-cold feeling washed over him, like someone just threw him in Artic water. Something has happened to Sora. He knew it.

"You can feel Sora?" Riku's Nobody asked, looking rather interested.

Turning around, Roxas headed for the path Sora and Kairi took, picking up speed as he ran. He couldn't afford to spend any more time talking to Riku's Nobody. Finding Sora was the priority. Everything and everyone would be in danger if anything happened to Sora.

"You can give me the answer the next time we meet, Sora's Nobody," Riku's Nobody called after him.

"The name is Roxas," Roxas yelled to make sure he was heard.

"Roxas?" Riku's Nobody repeated to himself. He laughed. "I see. That's where it came from. I don't have a name, but you can call me Kurix."

* * *

Author's rambling: Wonder if anyone saw that coming. 

Review. Please review. It's the only "payment" that fanfic writers ever get. I love and read every single one. They make me write faster too.


	7. Chapter 7

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 7: Lost and found

In the silence of the night, Roxas hurried towards the city centre as fast as he could. Frantically, Roxas darted his eyes around the deserted street, searching for anything that might give him a clue as to the whereabouts of the two people he was looking for. Drawn to his presence, a few NeoNobody emerged. They were eliminated by the impatient keyblade wielder before they had a chance to act.

Tall skyscrapers loomed over him like a steel forest. Despite that his soul was calling out loud to find the other half of him, Roxas didn't have any way of knowing the whereabouts of Sora. He used to be able to open portals that allowed him to travel long distance in a short time, when he was still in Organisation XIII. Right then he wished he still had that ability. Having fused with Sora once seemed to have cost him certain abilities. Roxas gave himself a mental slap. It wasn't the time to think about things that couldn't be changed. He forced himself to calm down and think. It had only been half an hour the most since he last saw Sora and Kairi. They couldn't have gone far.

The earth vibrated beneath his feet for a brief moment. Its magnitude was weak and the duration short, but just enough for Roxas to make out where it originated. It came from below the tallest building in the city. He didn't know the exact reason, but he had a feeling that was where he should go. He went inside and found the lift. The availability of electricity was a surprise. Roxas was further stunned by the number of basement floors on the button panel. There were a total of twenty-four floors below ground level. Randomly he pressed for B8, hoping it was his lucky day.

It didn't surprise Roxas too much to have chosen the wrong floor. It took him another try to get the right floor. Right away he knew it was the correct floor. He noticed Sora as soon as the lift door opened wide. The entire place was pitch dark. If it wasn't the reminiscence of the golden glow from the Light, Roxas could have easily missed him. Keyblade in hand, the brown-hair teenager stood in the middle of the seemingly spacious floor, staring at something above him.

"Sora!" Roxas called out, making his presence known. He stepped forward to make his way to where Sora was.

Sora looked to Roxas direction when he heard the call. "No! There's wat-" Sora cried out urgently. It was too late. He winced at the sound of a big splash. Roxas found himself trying to stay afloat.

"-er in front of you," Sora finished off grimly.

Pulling himself out of the water, Roxas was back to where he was standing a few seconds ago. He was drenched from head to toe. There was definitely something like a swimming pool in front of him and he was standing on the edge. Someone's bright idea to have a swimming pool on basement tenth floor. Before Roxas could ask what was going on, he noticed a huge black shadow was heading his way. He jumped out of the way just in time. It was a gigantic tentacle. The ground where Roxas stood was punctured into the shape of the tentacle.

Eyes adjusted to the darkness, Roxas looked above him. The tentacle belonged to a giant, nasty and octopus-looking NeoNobody. It called itself Octer. The creature's body was white marked with a long zipper, just like the Nobody. It was without a doubt a boss-class enemy. If it had a face, Roxas couldn't tell where it was. There were no eyes or mouth on its head. In terms of height, it must have been at least three storeys high with its powerful tentacles curled up. Its head was close to touching the ceiling.

A tentacle banged on the surrounding walls, causing the entire building to shake. Roxas realised that was where the vibration he felt came from. A second tentacle came smashing down to Roxas. With no more room to jump to, Roxas dove into the dark waters. Sora was busy hacking an attacking tentacle and jumping out of the way of a few other ones that were trying to knock him in the water. He was standing on a large plank floating on the water. There were a number of similar planks nearby. Roxas swam to one close to him and climbed on.

Keyblades out, Roxas stood in his defending pose. It was times like these he was glad to have the keyblade as his weapon, that way he could freely summon when he wanted it and dismiss it when he didn't. While Octer was trying to locate him, Roxas used the opportunity to jump on the floating planks to get to Sora.

Sora managed to hit a particular tentacle enough times for it to recoil. "Roxas," he said when Roxas reached his plank.

"What happened?" Roxas asked, holding back the urge to ask Sora if his trait of drawing himself in trouble was an inherited feature.

"Kairi-" Sora didn't get to finish. At the corner of their eyes, another tentacle whipped towards them. They both rabbit-jumped out of its way.

The plank rocked in all directions as they landed back on it, nearly caused them to lose balance and fall into the water. The two teenagers did their best not to move and waited for it to stablise itself. Roxas gave a sigh of relief when the plank stopped rocking. "How did manage to get yourself into this?" he asked with a frown.

"It's not my fault," Sora defended, his cerulean eyes trying to follow every movement of Octer. It was difficult to watch all eight tentacles at once because of their speed and irregular movement. It appeared Octer was not going to give up until it squashed Roxas and Sora into pancakes using its strong tentacles.

Seeing that not one, but two tentacles came falling down from above, Roxas and Sora jumped off the plank in separate directions. The tentacle smashed on the plank mercilessly, breaking it to bits. Roxas waited until Octer found him. It raised a tentacle and shot it to him. Prepared, Roxas sprang off the plank he was on at the precise moment, landing on one closer to Sora. Octer was getting angry because it missed its target again. "Its weakness is the head," Sora told Roxas as he ducked a tentacle that whooped above his head. An unnoticed tentacle shot out, hitting Sora and sent him flying into the water.

Roxas looked to see if the brown-hair teenager was ok. He almost forgot Octer wouldn't wait quietly while he did so. He barely jumped up in time when another tentacle took a direct hit at his plank. While in mid-air, another tentacle shot out from nowhere and wrapped itself around Roxas' lower left arm. Roxas responded quickly by trying to cut the tentacle with his free hand.

Confused by the number of tentacles around him, Roxas tried to stay focused while tangling in mid air. Another one came from behind and hit his back. Roxas winced. He felt like he was hit by a log. Octer tried to grab onto his other arm but miss and grabbed his feet instead. To his dismay, the two tentacles began pulling his arm and legs in different directions. Roxas swung his keyblade desperately, trying to cut either one. It was no use. His keyblade couldn't reach them.

Meanwhile, Sora wisely used the time the octopus spent on dealing with Roxas to get close to its head. A moment ago Roxas barely escaped a furious tentacle. The next time Sora looked, Octer was tearing Roxas into two. Panicking, Sora began hacking the round head frantically. His mind raced. Roxas was way too high up in the air for him to reach. There was nothing he could climb or jump on. The octopus' huge round head was too slippery to put a footing on. Utterly frustrated, Sora vented out more of his anger on the octopus. That seemed to work. The octopus loosened its hold on Roxas a little but didn't let go of him. Roxas used the opportunity to throw Oblivion up into the air. The rapidly spinning keyblade neatly cut through one of the tentacle that was grasping onto him. Leering in pain, Octer released him.

There happened to be a plank waiting conveniently for Roxas down below. Keeping an eye on the octopus, he reached up and caught Oblivion in a well-practiced manner. In total rage, Octer released its menacing screech whilst pouncing the water madly with its remaining seven tentacles. Roxas and Sora joined each other on the same plank, standing back to back.

"We can't keep on dodging. We got to do something," Roxas said. The NeoNobody boss was so angry it didn't seem to care if it was actually hitting its target or not. It was missing Roxas and Sora but not the floating planks. Sooner or later, they'd have no planks left to stand on. It was blocking the exit so they couldn't get away. Its Soul Shatter was not affecting them because of the protection from the Light. Nonetheless it was still an unpleasant sound.

Sora nodded. "If we can stand on its head…" His blue eyes lite up when an idea came to mind. He told Roxas his plan. Roxas agreed it was worth trying. Right away, Sora went to distract the octopus while Roxas remained on stand-by.

Sora waved and yelled to Octer to make sure it noticed him. The berserk octopus raised all its tentacles and aimed for Sora. Having found an opening, Sora flung his keyblade to the octopus' head. The razor-sharp keyblade buried into its white flesh like a giant dart, leaving about a third out. Octer hit the water around it furiously. Using the chance, Roxas snuck up closer to the giant NeoNobody, carefully avoiding the raging tentacles. He threw his dual keyblades into its head like Sora did. This time, he deliberately threw them higher than Ultima Weapon.

Roxas took a step back and jumped up. Using the ends of the three keyblades as stepping-stones, Roxas made it to the top of Octer's head. With their purpose served, the keyblades vanished and reappeared back in their owners' hands.

The top of the octopus' head appeared to be the weakest spot of its head, which couldn't be better for Roxas. Dual wielding with the two most powerful keyblades, he struck it with everything he had – and ending it with a graceful finishing hit.

A flameless explosion erupted. Roxas braced himself for the heat wave and was surprised to find it harmless. The huge NeoNobody turned into black dust in less than a second, sprinkling over the waters. With nothing to stand on, Roxas plunged down into the water, causing a huge splash.

Sora swam to the spot Roxas fell into. He couldn't help to be amazed by Roxas' strength and power. It made him wonder which of them would win if they were to have a serious match. The thought reminded him of their first meeting was in fact a fight. Roxas burst out of the water surface, coughing out the mouthful of water he swallowed unwillingly. Sora put a hand over his mouth, trying to hide his smile.

"If you think it's funny, you should try it," said Roxas, giving Sora a dirty look.

"I don't have to now that you've done that in my place," Sora grinned. Roxas pointed at something behind him with a surprised look. Sora turned around to see what it was. Just as he did so, Roxas shoved Sora's head under the water.

Sora surged back up, grasping for air. "What was that for?" Sora glared at Roxas, who was grinning mischievously.

"Now we're even," Roxas smirked, satisfied.

They swam back to the lift, splashing water at each other on the way. The lift was miraculously working. How it managed to survive those furiously bashing tentacles was a mystery.

It didn't feel safe to them hanging around the basement, so they went back up to the lobby. They took their turns telling their story of what happened after they parted. Roxas was shocked by what Sora told him about Kairi. After she pushed him down, Sora plummeted into the water below. The next thing he knew, he was being attacked by the eight-legged NeoNobody.

"I'm sorry, Sora," Roxas lowered his head. "If I didn't tell you to believe in her…"

"No, it's not like it's your fault," Sora refused the apology. "What happened to you?"

Roxas decided not to mention Kurix to Sora yet for a number of reasons. He didn't want Sora to recklessly go searching for Riku's Nobody after knowing Riku was in deep trouble. He knew better than anyone an angry Sora was unstoppable. They decided to inform the King about what they knew. Sora pressed one of the two buttons on his badge-shaped communicative device. At the other end, the King picked up the line almost instantly.

After hearing the story, they heard a long sigh over the communicator.

"Are you ok, your majesty?" asked Sora worriedly. The King sounded exhausted.

"Things are a lot worse than I thought. You did the right thing by letting me know. Donald and Goofy have just found the hoax of Omega in the world they were looking in. I'll tell them to head over to your side once I've confirm this one I have in front of me is fake," King Mickey's tired voice came from the other end.

"Don't be reckless, King Mickey," Roxas directed his voice to the badge. Sora thought if Donald was there, he'd be definitely angry with Roxas for speaking to the King in such way. The King answered he wouldn't. Leaving instructions for the two to stay where they were, he said he should be able to meet up with them within a couple of hours.

There was nothing for the two teenagers to do except to wait. Sora found a couple of sofas that were still in good enough condition to sit on. Out of boredom, Roxas collected some bottles from broken vending machines and began stacking them on top of each other for fun. With no calls from the King about change of plans, they assume he found a hoax. But that also meant Omega was on this very planet.

After watching Roxas doing his bottle stacking for a while, Sora felt bored though not sleepy. He tossed and turned on the sofa but couldn't sleep. He wondered how his friends in the other worlds are doing. Though he knew they were strong, he couldn't help but worried about Jack, Mulan, Hercules, Ariel, Beast and their companions. He didn't realise he was saying their names aloud until Roxas asked.

"Who's Tazan and Jane?" asked Roxas, puzzled at Sora's antics.

"You don't know Tazan and Jane? But I thought you have my memories," Sora asked back, more surprised than embarrassed.

Roxas shook his head. "It doesn't work that way, Sora. I only had fragments of your memories. So I don't know everything that happened to you in the past. I know who Jack and Sally are, but Tarzan?"

Surprised by the fact, Sora began telling Roxas about his journey starting from Destiny Islands one year ago. Roxas appeared to be quite interested. He listened and occasionally made comments about places he thought was funny or sad.

In the middle of telling his story, Sora heard a noise that drew both their attention towards the main entrance. It was dark inside and outside, so they couldn't see clearly. They ruled out the possibility it was some NeoNobody. Those creatures were smart enough not be make any noise when they were near. So it had to be something else.

A shadow moved. The way it was lurking told them it wasn't the King or Donald or Goofy. Roxas sprung up from his seat and sprinted out, nearly crashing into the automatic sliding door when it didn't open quickly enough. Sora chased after him. Roxas could hear footsteps ahead. The person he was chasing had a head start so it wasn't easy to catch up quickly. That person made a turn into a small alley. Vaguely, Roxas caught a glimpse of light blonde hair. That person continued to run away from him. Roxas was in no mood to run a marathon. Stepping on a nearby trashcan, he jumped high into the air and landed right in front of that person. That person skidded to a stop, startled to herself facing Roxas.

It was just Roxas thought. "There you are, Namine."

* * *

Author's rambling: I just had to add a fight into this chapter. I think this story has been lacking some action. Besides, battles are actually quite fun to write. I hope I didn't put everyone to sleep. There'll be much more story development in the next chapter. 

Thank you thank you and thank you to those of you who reviewed, add this story to their favourites or add this story to their alert list. You guys are wonderful.


	8. Chapter 8

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 8: Residing Darkness

Confronted by Roxas, Namine looked lost as to what she should do. She had her sketchbook in her hands.

"Why did you have to run, Namine?" Roxas asked, taking a step closer to the girl.

"Roxas. I, I was just," Namine stammered, not realising she took a step back as she did. "I thought you were a Heartless."

It didn't take a genius to figure out Namine was a bad liar. Roxas, for one, wouldn't buy that excuse. Not when he was positive she saw them and then she ran away. Namine was wearing her usual white, above-knee length summer dress. Her slender hands clenched onto her important sketchbook.

Sora joined them moments later. "Namine!" Sora was surprised to see her, but nonetheless greeted her with a big smile. Returning a smile at him, Namine asked him how he got here. Sora had to explain everything from the beginning again. Roxas stood and stared at the two, arms folded. Sora wasn't supposed to know Namine more than her being Kairi's Nobody. But Sora was treating her like an old friend.

"Could I see that?" Roxas extended his hand, asking for the sketchbook. He knew he didn't sound nice, and wasn't in the mood to either. For what she could have done to him and Sora, he considered himself relatively nice.

Namine drew her sketchbook close to her protectively. She shook her head, declining his request. "I'm sorry."

Striding forward to her, Roxas snatched the sketchbook from her and flipped it open.

"Roxas! What are you doing?" Sora stepped forward, trying to take the sketchbook back from Roxas. Roxas paced around to avoid Sora's snatching hands without taking his eyes off the sketchbook. His cerulean eyes widened as he went through each drawings.

"Give it back!" Sora scowled. Roxas had proven to be as slippery as wet fish.

Namine was watching them from a short distance. Roxas went up to her abruptly. He opened up the sketchbook to a page and showed it to her. "Namine," Roxas' voice was like the calm before the storm. "What is the meaning of this?"

At that moment, three voices called out to them from behind. Sora turned around and saw King Mickey, Goofy and Donald running towards them. On the contrary, Roxas and Namine stood very still. They didn't react to or take notice of the arrival of their companions, as though there were only the two of them in the deserted city.

King Mickey and Goofy looked up to Sora doubtfully. Sora simply shook his head and looked back to Roxas and Namine. Donald rolled up his sleeves, looking annoyed by Roxas' attitude. "What is Roxas doing to her-" the duck jumped when Sora hushed him quiet. Raising an eyebrow, Donald crossed his arms and fell silent.

Roxas stared at Namine demandingly. Namine stared back, her eyes hard and determined. Worried by their petrified posture, Sora went to take a closer look at the drawing that Roxas was still holding up. It was a sketch of Kairi with a red cross over it. Roxas released his hold on the sketchbook, allowing it to drop. Loose pages fell out and scattered all over the ground. Most pictures depicted Kairi, all bearing red crosses over them. There were also pictures of Sora, Goofy and Donald and scenes of Castle Oblivion. Those were without crosses.

Namine's eyes rested on the scattered drawings. She bit her lip, looking like a child expected to be scolded for doing the wrong thing.

"Do you know what you can do to Sora if you continue to alter his memories?" asked Roxas angrily, his voice getting louder. He was taken back when he saw Namine staring back at him accusingly. The look disappeared as quickly as it appeared. Roxas wondered if he imagined it.

Sora peered down at Namine, who hang her head in silence. "Namine?" he, looking concerned.

Namine turned to face Sora, her blue eyes meeting his. "I'm sorry Sora. I…" She lowered her head, afraid to meet his glance.

Sora's hands reached up to her face, pulling her cheeks until her mouth formed a smile. He did it gently so he wouldn't hurt her. Namine rubbed her cheeks. She remembered that he did it once to cheer her up in Castle Oblivion.

"I like the smiling Namine more," Sora said, smiling in a friendly way. "Can you tell me what happened?"

Namine looked at him gratefully. Slowly she began recalling the occurrence that took place a day ago.

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It all happened too fast for her to comprehend. When Namine opened her eyes, she found herself having a physical form once more. Kairi was holding an unconscious Riku, who just turned back into human by finding his heart through Kairi's guidance. They were inside a dark room about the size of a basketball court. Perplexed by the situation, Namine asked for explanation from Kairi. While Kairi was recalling the events, a dark portal appeared in front of them and out stepped a man in black hood. He had the most uniquely coloured aqua eyes in the world. The girls knew instantly he was Riku's Nobody.

His sudden appearance shocked Kairi and Namine to the extend they forgot to move. Riku's Nobody walked up to Kairi. "You must be Kairi," he said with a small smile. He looked exactly like Riku, so confident and heart-achingly handsome, except that his hair was raven black. "There's something I want you to do for me. I need to you find Sora and bring back his keyblade."

"What?" Angry at his attitude Kairi asked, even though she heard him perfectly well. She assumed his cockiness and rudeness came from Riku.

"I want you to do as I say. That is, if you don't want anything to happen to him," Riku's Nobody shrugged, referring to Riku.

Without warning, Kairi found herself pushed away by Riku, who threw a punch at his Nobody. None of them realised he had awoken. Riku's Nobody dodged it effortlessly. Riku was no weakling, but he only just recovered from being a Heartless. The punch came out slower and weaker than usual. Riku's Nobody held up a hand towards Riku. From his palm, an invisible force threw Riku back fiercely. He hit the wall hard and slumped to the ground. Kairi screamed, running over to where Riku lied unmoving. Namine was as scared as Kairi, but she didn't scream.

"No!" Kairi cried when Riku's Nobody came towards them. Tears rolled down her cheeks. "I will do anything, just don't hurt Riku. Please."

Namine stared at Kairi with wide eyes. She couldn't believe her ears. Fearing for the ill intentions of Riku's Nobody, Namine despaired at Kairi's weakness at the same time. He seemed to her different to others of their kind.

"No, don't listen to him," Riku pushed himself up with his left arm. His right arm was broken when he was took the hit on the wall. Riku's Nobody grabbed him up by his silver hair and tossed him across the room. Kairi screamed for him to stop.

"Run, Namine! Don't let Sora come here," Riku yelled out to Namine, his silver hair messy and stuck to his face by blood.

In the midst of it all, Namine froze. She didn't know what to do, what to say or what to think. Riku words went through her ears and echoed in her mind. Her logical mind told her to escape. Her feelings told her she couldn't leave Riku.

"RUN!" Riku's call snapped her back to reality. She stumbled up clumsily, turned around, running as fast as she could out the only door.

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Sora looked at Namine. She hang her head, her eyes wouldn't meet his glaze. He couldn't bring himself to hate or be angry with Namine, even if she did erase some of his memories. "Is that why you changed my memories?" he asked softly.

"I can't forgive Kairi for betraying you. Even if I'm part of her…that is more so why I can't forgive myself for what 'I' have done," Namine took her sketchbook back from Goofy, who kindly picked up all the drawings and put them back neatly for her. "I thought if you didn't know Kairi, you wouldn't trust whatever she says to you. I wanted you to remember what happened in Castle Oblivion, so if you see me you'd know who I am," she tightened her hold on the sketchbook. "And you'd trust me."

Sora was trying to interpret everything he was told. It never occurred to him that he would face Riku's Nobody one day. "I still don't get it. Why doesn't Riku's Nobody get along with Riku at all? I mean, Roxas never tried to kill me…and Namine never hurt Kairi either."

King Mickey nodded understandingly. "I think Roxas and Namine may be able to answer us."

Namine shifted her gaze at Roxas. Soon all eyes fell on Roxas, waiting eagerly for him to speak. "Well um, I'm not really sure either actually," he ruffled his hair out of nervousness. "But I think it is to do with the way Sora and Kairi look at their darkness and how Riku looked at his. I'm not good at this. Namine, I think you're better at explaining."

Nodding, Namine took over. "Sora and Kairi accepted the darkness in their hearts as part of them. Riku, on the other hand, never accepted the dark side of himself. Even though Riku allowed darkness to take over him, he never accepted it as part of him willingly or completely. I think that was why his Nobody would turn against him."

"Everyone, we need to save Riku as well as find Omega," King Mickey said. No one disagreed. Namine was especially glad to hear it. She was worried about Riku. During her with him and DiZ in Castle Oblivion, Namine knew well the sort of recklessness the silver hair youth was capable of. He wouldn't just sit and wait to be rescued unless he fainted all these time, which she seriously doubted.

"Riku should be at the lowest basement floor of that building where I found Sora and Roxas," Namine told them. "There is a lift but it's broken so it only goes as far as B12. We have to take the stairs for the rest of the floors below."

King Mickey asked everyone to hurry and then he, Goofy and Donald began running towards the direction of the building. Roxas saw Namine looking at Sora, as if she had something to say to him. He decided to leave the two alone and followed the three up ahead.

"Sora, I'm sorry," Namine apologised once again.

Sora stared at her for a moment. Now that he had the time to look at her properly, he noticed her pretty blonde hair was messy, probably from running away from monsters. Dirt was found on her plain white dress. There were quite a few cuts and bruises on her legs too. Sora sighed, "I know why you did it. Well, though I still don't remember Kairi, I think I better have memories of her back just in case," he winked at her. "But this time, don't make me forget about what happened back in Castle Oblivion. I don't want to forget either you or Kairi. You're both very important friends to me." He looked back and found his friends long gone. "Come on, we better catch up."

"Yes," Namine replied and ran after Sora.

The King, Goofy, Donald and Roxas waited for them in front of the skyscraper. Together they took the lift down to the twelfth basement floor. Just as Namine said, it wouldn't take them further than that. From that point, they must walk down to the bottom. Namine explained to them the way down wasn't just a set of continuous stairs. On each floor there were a number of rooms and only one room had the stairs that led downwards. Different floors had stairs positioned in different locations. Their way was dimly lit by fluorescent light. Not all the rooms were lit. Some fluorescent tubes went out and left them with darkness. There was no furniture at all in any of the rooms. All was found there were scratches and burnt marks, covering from floor to ceiling. Despite that Namine claimed she didn't encounter any enemies on her way up, the group proceeded downwards with caution.

For the first few floors, everything seemed normal. Nothing jumped on them or ambushed them. Sora, who had been leading the way, opened the door to the next room. He was bewildered by the sight. It was a room full of mirrors. There were six stand-up style mirrors in the room, lined up in a circle. Sora looked into one. As soon as he saw his reflection, he vanished.

Namine cried out in fright when she saw Sora gone. Goofy and Donald were next. They too, vanished into thin air within a blink. Roxas was the last to enter the room. He grabbed Namine's wrist and pulled her back. "Don't look into the mirrors!" King Mickey warned, keyblade ready in his small hand. Frantically, Roxas shoved Namine back to the way they came. But just as he turned around, he saw himself.

The mirror _moved_.

The next moment, Roxas found himself alone in a different room. He didn't even blink. Everything around him simply changed. He noticed he was still inside the skyscraper but on a different floor. Somehow the mirror, which he suspect was actually a NeoNobody, teleported him. He couldn't tell if he was higher or lower than where he was. His companions were probably brought to different floors and were separated from each other.

"Hello, Roxas," a snicker came from behind. Roxas spun around. Kurix stepped out from the shadow in his cool and confident demeanour.

* * *

Author's rambling: The flashback of Namine was much shorter when I originally planned it. But I enjoyed writing it so much it turned out like this. 

I probably should have made a note on this earlier. At the beginning of this sotry, Sora only knows about Roxas and Naime as much as he read about them in the real Ansem reports. Namine erased his memories of Castle Oblivion so he's not suppose to remember a lot about her.


	9. Chapter 9

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 9: Predetermined Fate

"That was your doing?" Roxas asked through gritted teeth. In a way he was glad that Kurix came to him; it meant he wasn't going after the others.

"Those NeoNobody? They just happened to help me out," the dark-hair youth shrugged. "I hope you've made up your mind about what I asked you before. When you and Sora fought the NeoNobody up there, I had a chance to witnessed Sora's strength."

Roxas frowned distastefully. So Kurix had used Octer to test out their strength.

Kurix continued. "If we are on the same side, we can defeat Sora and his friends easily. Once we become complete existence, we don't have to worry about disappearing one day. What do you say?"

Roxas stared into those aqua eyes, searching for any signs of emotion. Sometimes looking to somebody's eyes could uncover something of that person. The depth of those eyes was incredible. He couldn't guess what Kurix was thinking. At last Roxas replied, "Us Nobody were never meant to be."

"…So that's your answer?" asked Kurix with an unreadable expression.

"If you have pen and paper, I don't mind writing it out for you," answered Roxas sarcastically.

"Then I guess I'll just have to eliminate you."

As soon as he finished that sentence, Kurix became a blur. Having foreseen the outcome, Roxas was already prepared for the moment. He barely blocked Kurix's strike when he suddenly reappeared facing him. The taller youth was pushing him with a keyblade Roxas had never seen before. Steadying himself with a foot, Roxas pushed back with both his keyblades. Before Roxas could see what keyblade Kurix was carrying, his opponent held up a hand in the air. Remembering what Namine recalled in the flashback, Roxas bolted out of the way.

A loud cracking sound was heard, followed by a shower of gravel and sand from above. It felt like one of those demolish iron balls used to knock down old buildings hit there. Roxas dashed to a corner and jumped up, running horizontally across the wall, using his speed to defy gravity. He ran until he faced the opening of Kurix's back. Crossing his keyblades in front of him, Roxas sprung up, directing himself there. His keyblades clashed into a shield-like round barrier. It felt as though he hit on solid metal. He landed on his knees as he recoiled at the impact. Kurix had already turned around; his left arm became a blur of movement. Roxas jumped back with his keen reflexes to avoid the slash.

Roxas tried to think back the last time he fought Riku. He didn't recall Riku as a left-hander. Prior the fight, Roxas worried about how he should fight Kurix, since he couldn't "kill" him. Now it seemed he should worry more about himself.

"Why don't you want a heart, Roxas?" Kurix suddenly asked, lowering his keyblade. "Why do you help Sora? Don't you want to live? You don't want to disappear, do you?"

"Hearts are not meant for Nobody…they're for people," Roxas said, his expression softened a little. "We can only ever wish to have hearts of our own. But we never will at the end. Our only true heart lies inside our true selves. Mine in Sora and yours in Riku. Sora's heart is the only one I can ever have; likewise to you. If we gain hearts, that would mean they would lose theirs."

"You're wrong, Roxas. Who cares what happens to them? Getting our hearts is the only way we can live," said Kurix. In his left hand was a black keyblade with a beautifully decorated hilt.

For another time, the raven hair youth turned into a blur. Roxas was watching Kurix's every movements intently, yet he still couldn't catch more than a glimpse the moment before Kurix struck. At the same moment Oblivion clashed with the black keyblade, Roxas felt a sharp pain on his left shoulder. Feeling confused, Roxas saw a wicked smile on Kurix face. Roxas was certain that he blocked it well, so why was he still getting hurt?

Then he saw it. In Kurix's right hand held a second keyblade. It was vivid red in colour and measured approximately a foot longer than the usual keyblade. Roxas saw an opening and swung Oathkeeper at Kurix, forcing him step back to avoid it.

"You're the one who's wrong, Kurix. We can only ever be somebody when we are one with our true selves. We are not suppose to exist," Roxas grimaced, remembering back when Namine said the same thing to him. It was the truth he was nearly unable to bear.

Wielding his dual keyblades, Kurix strode forward and struck down at Roxas, using his height as an advantage. Almost simultaneously, Roxas blocked the black keyblade with Oblivion and the red keyblade with Oathkeeper. Kurix raised his keyblades and started hacking on Roxas' continuously, generating bright sparks with each hit. The shorter youth winced as he took the crushing impact of the keyblades.

"They don't care about us. Why should we care about what happen to them?" asked Kurix as he put more pressure on the keyblades, his eyes cold and piercing.

Each forceful hack from Kurix's keyblades sent a stinging vibration up his hands travelling all the way to his arm. Roxas felt his arms gradually going numb. It was a matter of time for Kurix to break through his defence. If he tried to do anything else, Kurix would kill him before he could get to it. Roxas couldn't believe the difference in strength between Kurix and him was so great. It hurt his pride a little since he was rank one of the strongest within the organisation. Riku proved to be a challenge the first time Roxas defeated him. If he was in Roxas' place, Kurix would've beaten Riku in much lesser time.

Roxas remembered someone from the organisation said to him: whenever one was stuck in battle, he should always listen for the rhythm of the enemy. It was based on a theory that all fighting styles had their own unique pace. Once figured out, there was not one who could not be beaten. Roxas had never tried it. He never had to. But at that moment, he could hear nothing except the ear-ringing sound of the clashing keyblades.

Before he could react to it, Roxas' keyblades flew out of his hands as though someone tore them away from his fingers. The blood red keyblade was coming down on him, inches from his face. Thoughts flashed through his mind. His companions should have found each other by now. They had the communication devices after all. Sora would manage without him. He could drive into his powerful forms with the help of Donald and Goofy.

At that precise moment, keyblade slipped in between Roxas and Kurix' keyblade, just before it hit Roxas.

"King Mickey!" exclaimed Roxas.

Before Kurix recovered the same surprise, King Mickey stuck multiple times at the raven-hair teenager, forcing him away from Roxas. Kurix defended himself without delay. Once the King considered they had enough distance from each other, he retreated back to where Roxas was. Holding his shoulder, Roxas stood up to face Kurix with the King. It surprised him that neither him nor Kurix noticed the King's arrival as they were distracted by their fight. He looked at his right hand. There was no blood. Bleeding wasn't something programmed in the Nobody. Pain was.

"Young man, are you Riku's Nobody?" King Mickey chided, frowning at Kurix.

"Well, well, I was wondering who it was." Kurix lowered his weapons. "Saved me time looking for you, my King." He reached into his pocket and took out a piece of paper no larger than letter-size. "I think this may interest you. It was stuck on Omega."

King Mickey's face ashened. It seemed to take him a while to find his voice. "Is that the last page?" he choked out. His expression was a mixture of fascination and fear. Roxas saw the King's hand trembled.

Holding up the note, Kurix skimmed the first line. "Hm, let's see. It says it here, 'This last page is for…'" He smirked. "If you want it, bring Sora to the bottom floor. I'll be waiting with Omega. Until then." Having said that, he opened up a dark portal and walked into it. Then he was gone.

"What was he talking about? What last page?" Roxas asked. He realised there was something he forgot to ask Kurix. Why did he want Sora's keyblade? As a keyblade wielder himself, Kurix should know the weapon couldn't possibly be taken away by force.

King Mickey looked up to him miserably. "The file of Omega project I read isn't complete, Roxas. The last page is missing. It is said in the content that on the last page, there is a method to trigger all NeoNobody to self-destroy. Xehanort and Xemnas might have twisted thoughts, but they were truly geniuses. He planned everything thoroughly by including a back up for his back up plan. In case the NeoNobody become rebellious, he left himself a way to destroy them," explained King Mickey. For a split second, he thought he saw Roxas flickering like a malfunctioning television. "Roxas, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, let's hurry to where Sora and the others are," Roxas lied. He didn't want to add another item to the King's list-of-things-to-worry-about. He was well aware the deep cut on his shoulder made a distortion in his temporary body. Like a small crack on the windscreen, it would eventually spread across the entire surface. Then another hit was all it would take to shatter the glass.

The King gave Roxas a doubtful look. Roxas decided to change the topic. "King Mickey, I don't want to sound suspecting and all. I really don't know how believable Namine's story is. There is no proof that any of what she said was true. She could be leading us to a trap." He felt guilty of suspecting Namine. He wasn't entirely sorry though; another betrayal could lead to destruction of them all. Besides, the defensible look that Namine gave him earlier was bugging him. She looked like someone who had been accused for doing the right thing.

"You are right, Roxas. We can never tell when someone is being truthful or not. Just like you and me. I cannot tell whether your words are honest. At the same time, you cannot tell whether my words are lies. But, we shall have faith in our friends."

Realising they were short on time, the two headed down. The King told Roxas that Sora, Donald and Goofy already found each other on one of the lower floors. The three of them were fighting against the Mirrors at that very moment. Odds did not look good for them. King Mickey and Roxas descended down the floors as fast as they could to avoid further delay.

They knew they were near when they heard the thundery strikes of lightning bolts, called upon by magic. The door was left wide opened. Yellowish flashes were strong enough to brighten the neighbouring room. Roxas groaned. King Mickey rolled his eyes. Donald was overdoing it again. Their worry ceased. With that amount of racket, their friends sounded like anything but dead. The King and Roxas looked at each other, thinking about the same question. How could they fight if they couldn't look at the their enemies at all?

They tiptoed and peeked into the room, showing only half their heads. Sora, Goofy and Donald were surrounded by the six Mirrors that assaulted them previously. The Mirrors were no longer disguised as ordinary mirrors. They changed their bodies and grew short arms and legs, though their reflective surface remained. Each was armed with a long fragment of razor-sharp mirror piece.

Their friends all had their eyes squeezed shut. Goofy was turning rapidly like a spinning top while holding out his shield to crash the enemies. He wasn't having much success, but at least he couldn't be hit. Sora was waving his keyblade aimlessly, covering as many directions as possible. Donald, as they thought, was shooting out thunder madly from his wand. Unfortunately, he missed more than he hit, and he hit his friends more than the enemies. Goofy and Sora were yelling at him to cut it out. To their relief, no one fainted or seriously hurt. However they had sustained a handful of mild cuts on their arms and face. Goofy became dizzy from spinning too much, toppling over Sora, who fell on Donald. The three went down like dominoes.

As the three scrambled up, Roxas sneaked a smile at the King. King Mickey smiled back in amusement.

"Roxas? You're there, aren't you?" said Sora suddenly, surprising both Roxas and King Mickey. His eyes were closed and he wasn't looking at their way either. "I hope the King is with you. But whatever you do, don't look into those mirror NeoNobody."

Roxas wondered how Sora knew he was there. Then he thought about the fighting rhythm. "Donald, Goofy and King Mickey, can you all step back? Sora and I will handle them," Roxas said. The Mirrors twitched when they heard him. Roxas quickly shut his eyes. Now he definitely had their attention.

"How can only you two handle all of them?" Donald asked incredulously.

"Donald is right. There are too many of them." Goofy agreed.

KingMickey interjected. "Goofy and Donald, leave it to Sora and Roxas." Immediately his general and magician began to protest. "It is an order," said the King resolutely. Reluctantly, Donald and Goofy retreated to the room where King Mickey waited.

"What are you thinking, Roxas? You won't like this, but I haven't managed to hit any of them," said Sora, fanning off any nearby Mirrors by waving his keyblade blindly.

Swapping places with Donald and Goofy, Roxas boldly walked into the centre of the room where Sora was. "We can listen to their movements. There are only six of them, a number we should be able to handle."

"Listen to their movements! But I can't do that!" yelled Sora impotently. He winced in pain as he received a cut under his eye.

"I can," replied Roxas. "I'll warn you when they are about to make a move. That way you should be able to avoid their attacks." He jumped up to avoid a Mirror that charged towards him.

"But I may hit you," Sora argued.

Roxas' mouth curled to a small smile. "No, Sora, you shouldn't hit me at all. You know where I am, even with your eyes closed. I am you. You can't hit yourself, but you need to concentrate. Clear everything from your mind and feel my presence. Sora, one coming to your right."

Having a rough idea on where the Mirror come, Sora stepped away from its path. He had no idea how to feel Roxas' presence. He tried to concentrate but nothing came to him. "Roxas, I can't," said Sora helplessly.

"Stand still and try again," persisted Roxas. Sora stopped on his spot and lowered his keyblade. Meanwhile, the Mirror didn't slack on their assaults. Roxas barely managed to protect Sora, getting by with a few shallow cuts. He understood he wouldn't last long. That's why he needed Sora, just as much as Sora needed him. Something he didn't tell the others was that he couldn't be sure if his idea would really work. It was theoretically possible, but theories were only theories. They didn't always reflect on reality. Roxas strongly felt the distortion rippling inside him, breaking him apart slowly. It only started a while ago and was already becoming more frequent. Roxas hoped he wouldn't turn out to be a fool by gambling on the likelihood that Sora could sense the fragment of his soul.

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Kairi decided to check on Riku while his Nobody wasn't there to keep an eye on her. She headed to the floor above, walking through the dark rooms and corridors towards the place Riku was held. Before he left, Kurix took some measures to ensure Riku would stay in one place. With thin chains bounding his feet and his hands behind his back, Riku wasn't going anywhere. Ironically, he seemed angrier at Kairi's decision than being tied up. Whenever Kairi tried to talk to him, Riku just ignored her.

Frustrated at the thought, Kairi kicked away a stone in her path. Why couldn't he understand? She was doing it for him. She wasn't going to wait helplessly again, just like she did for the past year for Sora and Riku to return. She had sworn to herself she would do anything for those two. No matter what happened, she had to protect Riku.

When she reached the room, Kairi paused before turning the doorknob. Last time she used the pleading tactic; this time perhaps she'd try yelling at him until he responded. "Riku-" Kairi froze. The room was empty. The chains that tied Riku were abandoned on the floor. There was blood on them. A trail of red lead out of the room. Kairi couldn't believe she didn't notice it on her way there, especially when it was so continuous. It would have taken considerable amount of bleeding to leave such a clear trail. Kairi followed it, hoping she would find him before his Nobody did.

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**Author's rambling:** This is probably the longest chapter so far. I've spent quite some time writing, editing and proofreading. I hope I've done justice to it. From now on, this story will also be available at KH Fanfic Archive. For some reason I can't post url here so see my profile for the link. I go by the same penname. If this site happens to be down for a few days and cause me unable to update, I'll post new chapters there. However, I'll still be updating this story here. If you prefer to read over there or review there feel free to do so. 

Edit note: In the first post of this chapter, I put in the names for Kurix's keyblades. But then I didn't really explain how Roxas knew the names. I'll introduce properly in the next chapter.

Review please, pretty please?


	10. Chapter 10

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 10: A Smile In A Memory

Namine rubbed her eyes, trying to push away the sleepiness. Meanwhile, her right hand was drawing restlessly on her sketchbook. It surprised her that the cramps hadn't come yet. After all, she had been drawing for a long time without stopping to rest even once.

After she was separated from the others, Namine found herself brought back to the lobby floor. Instead of going down again to look for her friends, Namine decided there was something more important she must do. That was to fix up Sora's memories. Much like Roxas, her existence was unstable. Namine didn't want leave Sora with fragmented memories in case anything happened to her. She found herself a bright enough spot to draw her pictures under the moonlight.

The thought of vanishing out of existence made her shudder. Namine felt somewhat silly. It happened to her before; it shouldn't scare her now. _Is it fine for you to just disappear?_ Riku's words echoed in her ears.

**Flashback **

It was the day before Roxas was scheduled to be returned to Sora. Namine was dragged back from the virtual world by DiZ for telling Roxas information that was considered excessive. She glared fiercely at the bandaged man as he threw her back into the white room in mansion. DiZ seemed to be accustomed to being hated. That man had a talent in repelling all kinds of scowls and glares directed to him. Namine pitied DiZ. The only force that drove him to live was hatred and the desire to seek revenge.

In a grumpy mood, Namine yanked out her sketchbook and crayons. The door swung open and in walked a hooded figure.

"Riku," said Namine. Without lowering his hood, Riku walked past her and stopped in front of the only window of the pure white room they were in. Not that she minded anyway.

"It is tomorrow, isn't it," asked Riku, looking outside. It wasn't really a question, more like a confirmation.

"Yes. Sora will wake up tomorrow," answered Namine gravely. At last, their hard work would be fruitful. She supposed she should be happier, but she couldn't be. It had cost each of them way too dearly. She felt that Roxas and Riku were the ones who suffered most in their selfish act.

"Is it ok to let Roxas go like that? He is now a friend to you, isn't he?"

Namine opened her sketchbook to a clean page. It was strange to hear that coming out of Riku, when he was the one who wanted Sora to wake up most no matter what it cost him. Sorrow filled her azure eyes. She spoke softly. "He'll hate me for what I'm doing to him. I doubt he'll still see me in the same light when he finds out. It's the fate of Nobody like Roxas and me to fuse back with our other half. It's…inevitable."

"What about you?" asked Riku. "Is it fine for you to just disappear?"

**Flashback ends**

Looking down to her sketchbook, Namine realised she had been doodling unconsciously while she was occupied by her memories. It was a picture of Riku; the first time they met face to face. He smiled at her when he found out she was the one who guided him out of darkness in the battle against Zexion in Castle Oblivion.

A noise came from nowhere caused Namine to jolt up. She scanned the place around her. There was no one. If she had a heart, it would be pouncing madly. She rose up from her sitting position, taking small steps forward. Unaware to Namine, a pair of aqua eyes behind her blinked.

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Putting all his hopes on Sora, Roxas listened attentively. If Sora was unable to sense the connection between them in time, what they were doing could turn out fatal. One of the Mirrors came from his left and another appeared on the right. Though Roxas couldn't see, he knew they each pointed a very large shard of glass at him. Roxas swang his keyblades, missing his enemies but cut their weapons into two. As he wielded Oathkeeper with his left hand, short sharp pain throbbed his wounded shoulder like small knifes. A third one crept up behind Sora stealthily that Roxas only just noticed. "Sora, behind you!"

To everyone's amazement, Sora stepped to the side, causing the Mirror behind him to pierce into empty space. His expression appeared content and relaxed. Roxas continued to call out the positions of the enemies to Sora while he busily evaded three others that were hot on his heels. With movements smooth and liquid-like, Sora dodged all the attacks directed at him. It almost looked he was playing hide-and-seek while blindfolded.

Enchanted by his marvellous motion, the Disney trio watched as Sora lifted his keyblade naturally, cutting through the first Mirror and immediately slipped past the second one charging towards him. While Sora handled half of the lot, Roxas had much more freedom in his action. Ducking under to evade a swipe from a mirror shard, Roxas straightened, turned around swiftly and dove Oathkeeper into the third Mirror's from its back. The next instant, Sora struck the fourth one that happened was beside Roxas. The Ultima Weapon whooshed past at lethal speed Roxas but avoided him skilfully. Three keyblades of white, black and silverish white were wielded in such flawless and continuous fashion it was like an arranged performance.

Though wield by different hands, the keyblades never made contact. The fifth and sixth Mirrors screeched and leaped into the air, targeting Sora. Jumping up into the air, Sora met the fifth one in mid air, taking it out before it had the opportunity to make its move. Whilst he dealt with that, he left his back to the last Mirror. Donald and Goofy cried out warnings to him, but there was not a sign of worry on Sora's face. Roxas appeared behind the last one, impaling both his keyblades into its body. It broke into quarters before exploding into dust.

Landing lightly, Sora and Roxas opened their eyes at the same time, staring into each other's cerulean blue with tranquillity. Donald rushed Sora's side and healed him with cure. Goofy and King Mickey joined them.

"Good one, Sora," complimented Roxas, grinning.

Sora returned an almost identical grin. "Piece of cake." He suddenly wished he had a brother like Roxas.

While everyone tended their injuries, King Mickey spoke up. "Everyone, there is something very important I need to tell you." The King told them the existence that the last page of the Omega Project was suppose to save the world, provided they retrieve it in time. King Mickey looked up at four hopeful faces. "That is not all to it," the King continued glumly. "We are currently at what I believe to be the last stages of the project. Omega had been programmed to carry out stages of the plan. The appearance of those Mirrors indicates we are now in its third last stage. In less than two hours, it will reach the last stage."

As Sora listened, he had to resist the urge to complain. The King had a bad habit of hiding information until the last minute that he wasn't exactly thrilled of.

"What happens in the last stage, my king?" Goofy asked worriedly.

King Mickey looked at him sternly. "Very little information had been given about that. In the document, it wrote that Omega would depart at the final stage, spreading massive number of NeoNobody to other worlds. After that, the clones of Organisation XIII will be complete and functional. I do not know what depart means, but it does not change the fact we must stop Omega at all cost. Right now there are still few NeoNobody that made it outside this world. If an army of them go to worlds such as Radiant Garden where everyone is practically defenceless against the soul shatter, they would be turned into Heartless and Nobody within minutes."

"Is there a relation between Riku's Nobody and the NeoNobody? Does he command them?" asked Sora.

The King turned to Roxas. "What do you think, Roxas?"

Roxas folded his arms and considered for a moment. "No, I don't think so. If the NeoNobody wouldn't listen to me, I doubt they'll take his orders. Besides, their actions should be programmed by Omega's computer. I think they only take orders from Omega and no one else. Unless he somehow edited the programme, which I don't think he can because Xemnas would certainly have passwords, firewalls and other things guarding it."

"Roxas?!" cried Sora in distress. All eyes went to him. For a brief moment, Roxas flickered like a television with poor reception.

"Was it from back then?" asked King Mickey, concerned.

Roxas forced a weak smile. "Kurix was quite something," he admitted. He blinked in surprise as Donald called forth the cure magic on him.

"Give it up, healing magic wouldn't stop it," said Roxas. Donald ignored him and yelled cure again.

"What will happen to you?" asked Sora with a slightly shaky voice, fearing the answer.

His Nobody stared at him calmly. "I only gained physical form by borrowing a body of a NeoNobody you defeated, Sora. I'm just half of your soul. Without a form, I can't exist," said Roxas stiffly.

"But there has to be a way!" Sora shook his head vigorously. He tried to think of something, anything that might help. There was none. He knew nothing of the Nobody.

"Anyhow, you won't be rid of me just yet. I can hold up a while longer. We still need have your annoying friend's Nobody to take care of," said Roxas brightly, more so than Sora thought he could.

Donald, who had been shouting healing spells for the entire time, fell on the ground and landed his bottom from exhaustion. Sora was proud of his friends' determination and stubbornness, even though it didn't seem to help Roxas at all. Face tinted red by frustration, Donald yelled cure one last time. The almost faded protection from the Light suddenly brightened. Roxas sensed the distortion within him slowed down a little. King Mickey patted on Donald's back for his effort and recovered him with one of his valuable elixirs.

"We seem to be missing something important," said Goofy. Arms crossed, he tilted his head, thinking hard with all his might. What made it strange was that everyone else had the same feeling.

"Oh shoot!" cried out Roxas. Sora and Roxas looked at each other, wide-eyed. "Namine!" They said on the same beat.

Sora was almost shocked when King Mickey said they would press on without Namine. The King stressed the need to take care of Omega before anything else, for that they have no time to spare. It took King Mickey some time to convince the others that Namine was a sensible girl and she would be hiding just like she had been before help arrived. The others eventually complied. Sora was not so convinced, but the King's authority made Sora difficult to rebut.

They made haste travelling downwards. They moved swiftly through floors and corridors, compromising their safety. On around the seventeenth floor, just as they entered another room, Sora saw someone sitting in a corner. His first reaction was to halt and told the others to stop. The light was dim so he couldn't see that person's face. When he noticed that the figure was not moving, Sora cautiously walked closer to see who it was.

It was Riku.

"Riku!" Sora rushed to his friend's side. Appeared to be unconscious, Riku slumped on the floor, using the corner to support him. Everyone bent down to see how Riku was, encircling him in the middle. They all grimaced as they examined his injuries. Besides his blood-streaked face, both of his lower arms looked terrible. The skin around his wrist was raw and bleeding like they were scraped on a grater. Blood gushed out from the arteries of his left wrist.

Those who could use healing magic, which were Donald, Mickey and Sora, cast curaga at Riku repeatedly until their magic ran out. Goofy and Roxas threw Riku all the potions they had in stock, which weren't many. Then they applied ethers to the magic users so they could continue the healing. They repeated and rinse until Riku's injuries were almost fully healed. Faces brightened when they saw Riku began to stir.

Riku turned his head around and looked at everyone with a sleepy look. "Sora, your majesty, Donald, Goofy and…" He paused when his eyes stopped on Roxas. "Roxas." Sora thought he saw Riku's expression hardened as he said the name.

Too eager to wait another moment, Sora blurted out. "What happened to you, Riku?"

The King joined in. "We heard about your Nobody from Namine. Did you have another fight with him?"

Relief spread over Riku's face. "Well, not really. Let's just say I made a desperate attempt to escape. Don't worry, I've made a mental note not to try ripping my hands out of chains again," he chuckled.

Sora crossed his arms and examined Riku. "Wait a minute Riku," he said, frowning. "You left Kairi back there?"

"If you're worried about her, you don't have to be. She's a hostage so she won't be kill," said Riku plainly. He didn't see the blond hair girl he was looking for amongst the heads. "Where is Namine?"

"You mean you just left Kairi with your murderous Nobody?" Sora demanded heatedly.

Roxas cut in. "He calls himself Kurix."

Riku stood up angrily, towering over Sora by a head. King Mickey stepped between them when he was about to yell back. "Stop it you two, I will not allow this." Sora and Riku stepped back reluctantly, glowering at each other. "Kairi might have been a hostage, but she is no longer one. Riku's- I mean, Kurix doesn't need her anymore. The last page of Omega Project is all he needs to blackmail us."

As he spoke, a soft rattling sound was heard from a distance, drawing everyone's attention. It then grew louder within seconds, coming from both doors. The party drew out their weapons. Goofy and Donald gulped. Sora looked at his friends nervously. King Mickey, Riku and Roxas narrowed their eyes, trying to figure out what was making the noise.

Then the noise stopped. Utter silence loomed over, making Sora feel wary.

All of a sudden, numerous white NeoNobody of all shapes of sizes came flooding into the room from the opened doors on both sides. Startled, Sora and his friends frantically confronted the nearby enemies. Fortunately, none of the NeoNobody were the Mirrors they faced a while ago. They weren't in luck either. Waves of enemies came back as they destroy them. They tried to force their way out but they couldn't even step out of the room. They were trapped in a pool of white.

"There are too many of them!" Sora yelled to the King. He could hardly move without bumping into a friend or enemy. He couldn't even see all of his friends with the NeoNobody blocking the way.

More flocks of white emerge from thin air, but they didn't attack Sora. Looking closely, Sora discovered they were actually Nobody. The twenty or so Dusks and other assorted Nobody teamed up to destroy all the NeoNobody near the door, forging a path for them. Sora was glad to see they had allies. He felt a tang of irony. The Nobody that caused him so much trouble were now helping them.

Roxas said something to the Dusks that Sora didn't hear. The Dusks paid him respect and daunted the remaining NeoNobody. Roxas beckoned to Sora hurriedly. "Leave it to them. The NeoNobody will be taken care of."

All the colours were drained from the King's face. "This is terrible," he shook his head in apprehension. "I shouldn't have underestimate Omega. We're already in the second last stage. There isn't a couple of hours, we may be down to minutes."

More enemies appeared in their way but they were all stopped by the Nobody. With the new alley hindering the NeoNobody, the six continued downwards. Sora felt like they had been running forever, bringing them closer to core of the planet with each step. When they were all exhausted from running, Donald yelped in delight. At last, they reached the bottommost floor.

* * *

**Author's rambling:** I hope I didn't go overboard with the action. I have put conversations in between the cool it down. Goofy can't use magic...right? 

I finally got Sora's final form!!! I was showing my friend KHII at his place and it must've been because of his lucky PS2. Before I had been driving until the kangaroos go home and I still couldn't get it. Talk about frustrating.

And guys, please drop a line in the review box -points below-. Especially if you have me on favourites or alert list. It doesn't take a minute to write a short comment. I spend days on a single chapter so writing something back would show you care too. It makes the author me very, very happy and keep me writing. Thank you.


	11. Chapter 11

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 11

The door at the end of their path stood quiet and still before them. It didn't look much different to the hundreds that Sora opened earlier. Before proceeding further, Riku spoke. "Wait, Sora. I should probably stay behind," he suggested.

"Why?" Sora turned around to face him, perplexed.

"Riku is right. There was a chance Kurix doesn't know we have already found Riku. We can take advantage that," the King said, giving Riku his communication device.

Riku pinned the badge-like device on his shirt. "See you later, Sora," he said, flashing an assuring smile at his best friend.

Sora didn't want to leave Riku behind. But it was necessary. "See you," he said, knowing his best friend wouldn't be defeated easily.

Heart filled with anxiety, Sora pushed open the door. He was stunned by the sight. They were inside a spacious floor about the size of a school hall. Half the space was taken up by an enormous machine. It was oddly shaped, with the main portion looking like a small iron mountain. Surrounding it were numerous long and sharp metal spikes, sticking out from the ground below. The spikes were unorderly, like a fence that went through a cyclone. Sora expected Omega to be quite bulky, but this was substantially different from what he had in mind. Standing about two blocks away from them and in front of the machine was a hooded figure. Sora noted that he wasn't armed. He had his back to them with his hood lowered. Despite that, there was almost no doubt who he was.

Sora was about to say something. Before any sound came out, someone called his name from above.

"Sora!"

Looking up, he found Namine standing on a small balcony about halfway to the top of the enormous machine. Her arms were kept behind her back.

The hooded figure turned around to face them. Sora held his breath for a moment. Though he had been told a few times what he looked like, he couldn't help to be surprised. Not only did he look exactly the same as Riku, the atmosphere around him was the same. He could have been Riku's twin if he wasn't a Nobody.

"We finally meet, Sora," said Kurix, wearing the same teasing smile that Riku always had on his face. "And of course, Roxas, your majesty and his followers," he added. Not to the party's surprise, Donald's protests erupted spontaneously.

Sora didn't realise he was staring at Kurix face until Roxas kicked him on the heel. He flushed red for a split second from embarrassment. "What do you want? Where is Kairi? And what are you going to do with Namine?"

"Which question do you want answered first?" chuckled Kurix, looking amused. "It seems like Kairi's gone out for a walk. I thought you would've met Kairi when you were on your way down here. Well, at least her Nobody is keeping me company."

Brows burrowing, King Mickey stepped forward. "I have brought Sora with me. Now tell us your intention."

Slowly and steadily, Kurix walked towards them. "What I want is very simple, your majesty. You see, I only want my heart back." As they spoke, Sora, Roxas, Goofy and Donald watched with anticipation.

Kurx ran a hand through his fine raven hair, brushing away the long fringe from his eyes. "Since I'm not like Ansem or Xemnas, I won't bore you with a speech. It's much simpler to get straight to the point."

He continued, gaze shifting to Sora. "I want Sora to free Riku's heart with his keyblade. Then I'll give you this piece of paper so you can save the world. Sounds like a bargain?" At some point as he spoke, Kurix had taken out the piece of paper from his hood's pocket.

His words suspended in the air, as if it was hung there long enough for them to read it ten times over. The only sound was Omega's engine humming in the background. Sora felt he had been thunderstruck. Why didn't he think of it before? They knew Kurix wanted to become an existent being using whatever means. Logically, he would need a heart. Since he couldn't just have any heart, he needed to take it from Riku.

Roxas recovered before Sora. "Why Sora's keyblade though? He's not the only one who can use them," he argued.

"Didn't the King or Riku tell you, Roxas? At least the King should know that the only keyblade that can remove the heart completely is Sora's Kingdom Key. All the other keyblades are used for battle and for unlocking purposes. Sora is special. Only his Kingdom Key can remove hearts." Kurix looked down to the small King. "One person's heart can save you the whole world. You shouldn't even need to consider, your majesty."

"Tough luck, Kurix," Roxas snapped. "Riku isn't here."

"That's right! You can't get the heart without him!" Donald joined in, scowling.

Kurix smiled. "No, I think he is."

Sora didn't exactly see what occurred next. It had happened before he could react to it. He felt a gust of wind, followed by the crisp sound of clashing keyblades. He saw Kurix was blocking Way to the Dawn with a keyblade he had never seen before. It was longer than all the other keyblades. Its body was blood red in colour with a silver end. There were patterns embroidered on it. Gritting his teeth, Riku pushed Kurix with his keyblade. Kurix's expression was the opposite, he looked composed and confident. In just moments, Riku had somehow closed up onto Kurix quick enough to be unnoticed by most of them but not quick enough to take his Nobody by surprise.

Sora, Roxas, Donald, Goofy and King Mickey rushed forward to help. They didn't get further than a step before they were thrown back an invisible force, landing them on their backs.

Using the strength of one arm, Kurix shoved Riku back with his long keyblade. Riku steadied himself, eyes stayed glued on his Nobody. Behind them, everyone scrambled up to their feet.

"Do you really not care about what happen to this piece of paper?" said Kurix coolly. "It's time to save the world, Riku," he added mockingly. Riku's grip on Way to the Dawn tightened in anger. But he winced and dismissed his keyblade.

"There we are. Riku's here now, your majesty," said Kurix, smiling satisfactorily.

Sora slowly turned to look at Kurix, and then at King Mickey. "Your majesty?" he whispered, face aghast. The King wouldn't meet his gaze.

"Do it, Sora," said Riku firmly. Sora thought his ears were deceiving him.

"I'm sorry, Riku," said King Mickey in a small voice. Sora wondered if it was guilt that kept the King looking down to his toes. Riku said nothing in return, his expression stoic.

The Kingdom Key materialised in Sora's hand. He examined at it. The had claimed victory for him over many battles. Now, that very keyblade will pierce through Riku's heart. Sora lifted his head to scan the faces of all the people in front of him. All but Roxas looked at him sympathetically. Not that it helped much, Sora felt a tiny bit better to know Roxas understood he didn't want sympathy that moment. Although, he didn't understand how they could be so calm. Were they waiting for him to decide? No, they didn't have a choice. Sora was still struggling to digest the fact that the King wanted him to take his best friend's heart out. How did they come to this? Why have things gone so horribly wrong?

"No!" Namine screamed from above. "Sora, you can't do that! Please don't," tears streamed down her smooth cheeks. "I beg you Sora, don't use your keyblade on Riku, please," she said as she sobbed, choking on words.

Looking through her tears, Namine saw Sora rigidly turned to face her. He looked so lost and confused. Riku stood with his fist clenched. He turned to the side so she couldn't see his expression. Namine realised in horror that her words alone wouldn't stop them. The King had already decided; and Riku would not change his mind once it's made up. She took a deep breath and gathered herself together. Ropes had bound her hands tightly. Her eyes dart about and found what she needed. Prior Sora's arrival, Kurix had been fidgeting the control panel. He seemed to be having trouble with it because he ended up breaking the screens in frustration, shattering glass everywhere. Namine bent down as low as she could so her restraint hands could reach. With a great deal of effort, she got hold of a piece of glass fragment and began to work on the ropes.

Sora looked up to the sobbing Namine. She looked so sad. Never had he seen her more upset. Sora looked back to Riku. His silver-haired friend had a pained expression on his face. He was not any happier than Namine. Words caught in Sora's throat. He couldn't get them out. Somehow, Roxas spoke for him.

"What would happen to Riku if his heart leaves him? I don't think this has ever happened before." Roxas asked the King.

"You're right Roxas. Anything can happen. There are two likely possibilities. The heart may go to Kurix, making him human and turning Riku into a Nobody. Or," the King took a small breath. "Riku will die the moment his heart leaves and Kurix won't get the heart either. The heart returns to Kingdom Hearts."

"Are you guys finished yet?" asked Kurix, looking bored. Holding the paper between his fingers, he waved it back and forth. "I can wait, but Omega won't. The project is close to completion."

"Just do it, Sora!" commanded Riku, ignoring Namine's wailing in the background.

Slowly, Sora lifted up the Kingdom Key, pointing it to where his friend's heart lie.

Without warning, the ground trembled violently. Sora stumbled forward, dropping his keyblade. He watched in terror as a large crack began to eat its way across the floor. The tiles beneath their feet were crumbling into pieces. Everyone was busy trying to stay on their feet and not fall over or crash into each other. Then it stopped. Sora looked around, wondering what was going on. Suddenly the ground vibrated again, throwing Sora off his feet. Roxas caught him by the wrist and pull him upright.

"What's happening?" asked Sora, stunned by the chaos engulfing them.

"I don't know," answered Roxas, looking around anxiously.

Another thunderous sound ripped through the air. Sora and Roxas was stunned by what the sight in front of them. Omega was moving. A metal head emerged from the ground below, ripping apart the tiled flooring as it did so. The metal slope was in fact the body of Omega. It rose up slowly, bringing up front and back legs. Joining the head and body was a long neck, which was made up by sections. The spikes that stuck out from the ground earlier were actually part of Omega's wings. There were four wings in total. It also had a tail, longer and thicker than its neck. Omega looked somewhat like a gigantic robot dragon.

Sora and Roxas stood transfixed with mouth agape.

"What-" Sora began.

"-the hell," Roxas continued

"-is that?" finished Sora.

Neck stretched all the way out, Omega let out a thunderous roar. Sora and Roxas covered their ears. Sora caught a glimpse of Kurix running towards Omega. His attention was diverted when Roxas called him.

"Look, Sora!" Roxas cried, pointing at the direction of Omega's neck. Sora had to look hard to vaguely saw the last page of the Omega project caught between the section joints of Omega's long metallic neck. It wasn't the only thing that surprised him. Namine had somehow freed herself and was climbing up Omega's back. Kurix managed to jump onto Omega, going after both Namine and the last page. Omega flapped its wings, generating strong gusts around them.

Omega's wings began to flap faster. Soon its feet were lift in the air.

"It going to fly away!" cried Sora, squinting to block dirt from entering his eyes.

"Yeah like it's not obvious enough!" yelled Roxas. They were using every bit of strength trying not to be blown away by the strong gusts. Omega was pecking apart the ceiling with its head, sending down shingles to the party.

Sora panicked. They were in a helpless situation. The wind was in their way. Donald, Goofy and King Mickey were busy dodging the shingles raining down on them. At the corner of his eyes, he saw Riku jumped up and held onto Omega's tail with both hands. His feet dangled in the air as Omega rose higher. Sora thought about doing the same, but the tail was out of reach. Just as he was thinking up a solution, the tail flipped and was heading their way.

"Roxas!" Sora called his Nobody. Not needing explanation, Roxas prepared himself for the moment. At the precise moment, Sora and Roxas caught one of Riku's ankles each. They were hurled upwards as their feet were lift off solid ground. The force was so great it they almost loosened their grip. They certainly didn't notice Riku winced as their grip tightened around his ankles. Sora barely heard someone screamed and fell off from Omega on the other side. To his astonishment, it was Kairi. Goofy caught her. Sora had no idea why Kairi was there, but he didn't have time to ask either. So he let himself be carried away by Omega.

"Let go of me you two!" Riku called to the two teenagers dangling below. "Do you know how heavy you two are?"

"Let go!" Sora repeated and laughed nervously, as though Riku was telling some really bad joke. "Do you have any idea how high we are now, Riku?"

Roxas looked down below and swallowed. In a matter of seconds, Omega had crashed through about eight floors and still surging upwards with great velocity. The King, Donald and Goofy were shrinking to very small. "Nope, letting go is definitely not an option."

"Come on Riku, pull us up. I know you can do it!" Sora chirped cheerfully. He hated to admit to Riku, but flying was an incredible feeling. Wind whisked passed his face and everything flied past him with amazing speed. It reminded him of the fight against the flying fish boss in The Land of Dragons.

"Sora, is it just me or you're sounding like you're enjoying this?" Riku clamped his hands around Omega's tail as hard as he could. He might've been joking when he told them to let go; but he definitely wasn't joking at the part about their weight.

"That is disturbing Sora," Roxas said, shaking his head but had an amused expression. "But I'll have to say this is truly amazing. It's not something we get to do all the time. Hey Riku, stop daydreaming and get us up. Namine is in danger you know."

Riku had murder in mind as he summoned all the strength in his body to pull up three people. It seemed almost impossible to do with so much weight on him. He thought he was going to die but eventually they got up to Omega's spacious back.

* * *

Author's rambling: Before you guys scream and say "OMG what is RikuNami doing in this story?", I urge everyone to read Chain of Memory's manga. I have no intention to advertise for the publisher, so go borrow a copy or stand and read. It doesn't matter. In my opinion, KHII does a bad job in portraying Namine's character. She is seen as a rather cold-hearted and evil witch. There isn't enough explanation on her actions, since it is told in CoM. But a lot of people didn't play that game before they play KHII, so there is confusion about her character. Namine is quite different in the manga. 

Please leave a comment or review, ne?


	12. Chapter 12

Keys of Destiny 

Chapter 12

Omega continued surging up the air, breaking through floors in its way. Eventually it soured into the open night sky. Beneath it, the skyscraper began to break apart.

"We made it!" exclaimed Sora. He took a deep breath of fresh air. It smelt much better than the musty air inside the skyscraper.

"I made it," corrected Riku in a weak whisper.

"What's the difference?" Roxas said with a smirk, not hiding it on purpose. Riku was too exhausted to shot back the comment.

"Just why do we always have to fight something huge and flying at the end?" grumbled Sora.

"Who knows," Roxas shrugged. "They're not very creative, are they? The bad guys I mean."

Worried about the friends they left behind, Sora looked down from Omega. The deserted city had grown as small as a model. A large object flew over them. It was the King's gummi ship, the Royal Library. The patch at the bottom of the ship opened, dispatching the Magus Hat. The smaller gummi ship dived down towards the collapsing skyscraper.

With his friends entrusted to the Queen, Daisy, Moogly and the squirrels, Sora's eyes scanned around for signs of Namine. He found her hanging onto Omega's neck. The last page of the Omega project was stuck on the joint between the giant machine's neck and head. Kurix was fighting a group of Nobody. It appeared like he was stopped by them before he was able to catch up to her. Namine was clinging onto Omega's metallic neck with her life.

Sora looked over to Roxas. When their gaze met, Roxas nodded. Sora was amazed at how Roxas seemed to be able to tell a lot of what he was thinking without him needing to say anything. They were similar in so many ways. Was it only because he was his Nobody and he was his somebody? Sora still hadn't figured out. Together they ran up Omega's back, blocking Kurix's path. He had just eliminated the last Nobody.

Kurix gave them a smirk before spun around to block a hit from Riku from behind.

"Is that all you can do, Riku?" asked a smirking Kurix as he swung his red keyblade at Riku.

Riku called forth his shield to block it. "If you're my Nobody, you know I won't give up," he said with a small smile. It was soon replaced by a determined expression. "It wouldn't have come to this if it wasn't me. You're not supposed to exist, Kurix. I'll clean up this mess myself."

Kurix casually moved to the side to evade a hit from Oblivion. His black keyblade returned a hit to Roxas, who blocked it with the white Oathkeeper. Sora joined in with his Ultima Weapon. The raven hair youth didn't seem to care how many people he was against. "Have you ever wondered why I'm so much stronger than you, Riku? This is the power you've been denying – the power of darkness. However much you may hate it, it is part of you. And, that isn't just your heart, Riku. It is my heart too." Kurix's voice and expression turned icy cold. "Why can you live and I can't? What makes you more worthy than I?"

Riku ignored him and continued striking with Way to the Dawn. Kurix's words stabbed Sora like a knife in the heart. Jumping out of the tangle of keyblades, he glanced over to Roxas, wondering if Roxas felt the same. His Nobody was busy attacking Kurix with Riku.

"Stop getting in the way, Riku!" Roxas snapped, halting his keyblades in mid way to avoid hitting the silver hair ally.

"What did you-"

"Riku, Roxas is right!" Sora said to Riku, who glared in return. "I'm saying, Roxas didn't mean that. Let us take care of Kurix here, you go save Namine."

Riku looked at Sora and then at Roxas. "I'll be back as soon as I can," he said before running off.

Looking ahead, Riku could see the last page was still at where he saw it last time. Namine had climbed a fair way. She was extending an arm, trying to reach the piece of paper while using the another arm for keeping herself from slipping down. She had slipped her feet into the thin gaps between the neck section joints. Riku looked around him, thinking what he could do to help. Somehow, Namine always surprise him by doing something he never thought she would.

**Flashback**

"You've done well, Riku," said DiZ, after Riku brought Roxas back to the laboratory.

Without a word, Riku left. He didn't even look back at DiZ.

It had only been a while and it was already sickening him. In exchange of the power of darkness, Riku's entire body changed. The battle with Roxas kept him from thinking about it at first. But he couldn't ignore it for very long. Perhaps it was just as Ansem said - that he could never escape from him. No matter how much Riku tried, the smell of darkness continued lingering around him – almost like a curse.

Not caring where he was heading, Riku slipped out the haunted mansion. He thought perhaps he could find a place in the woods where he could see no one and no one could see him for a good while.

Before he had gone far, he heard the sound of the haunted mansion's front door swinging open behind him.

"Riku!" Namine's voice followed.

Riku didn't slow down. Instead, he quickened his pace. He wanted to be left alone, but he didn't want to speak. He didn't want to hear Ansem's revolting voice coming out of his own throat.

"Riku?" She sounded a little uncertain. He had grown significantly taller after the transformation. "Wait, Riku!"

Namine ran to catch up to him. Riku was forced to stop as she was standing in his way. He turned away so she couldn't see his face. It was a useless effort. She was going to see it anyway. He thought he had snuck out of the mansion quiet enough not to be noticed. Riku braced himself, ready for her startled reaction. There was no way she would recognise him, not when he had changed so much. She would probably be terrified enough to run away screaming. He did have Ansem's face, after all.

Namine was now seeing his new look. Riku waited for her calm expression to contort into sheer terror.

She blinked. Before Riku could say anything, Namine was holding his hand with both of hers. She closed her eyes.

After a few seconds, Namine reopened her azure eyes. "Riku," she said, smiling warmly.

After the incident, Riku spent months in Ansem's form. At the beginning, it was a freakish experience to find the face of the person he hated most every time he saw himself in a reflective surface. He couldn't get used to it completely, but he gradually grew to accepting his new face and body. Watching over Roxas in the virtual world kept him occupied and that helped too. Most of all, Namine and DiZ treated him the same as they always did. Namine in particular, who never looked at him in a different way.

**Flashback ends**

Riku reached the part where Omega's neck and body joined. He had been walking around in circles for while, trying to decide how to help Namine. The long metal neck of Omega was smooth, making it difficult to hold onto. Whoever wanted to climb up could only place their hands and footing in the thin gaps between the neck sections. However the neck sections were considerably far apart, which meant whoever climbed it would need to get from gap to gap pretty quickly. The girl managed to climb up a little more. The last page was still out of her reach. But it was very close. She could almost touch it. The piece of paper couldn't be reached unless she left the secure footing that held her safe.

Though he was worried, Riku could do little other than to watch as she removed her bare feet from the gap, pushing herself higher. He saw Namine snatched the last page with her right hand. The moment she had it, she slipped. Namine held it tightly as she plummeted down in the air. Fortunately, Omega happened to have tilted its head slightly backwards, so Namine wouldn't fall down to the direction of the collapsing skyscraper. With only a couple of seconds to spare, Riku made a rough guess on where she would land. Just as he was about to look up again to make sure he had the position right, Namine fell right into his arms.

"From where did you learnt to be so reckless, Namine?" asked Riku, raising an eyebrow at her.

Namine smiled. "From you, of course." She wrapped her slender arms around his neck. "I knew you would come, just like the time you came for Kairi and me back at The Castle That Never Was. I miss you. I really, really wanted to see you."

Riku held her close to him and closed his eyes. Knowing that there could never be anything between them, he couldn't deny he missed her too. Riku missed seeing her smile. He missed listening to her voice. Namine was Kairi's Nobody, but to him, they were two totally different person.

They broke part from the embrace. Riku put Namine down so she could stand on her own. She handed him the last page. It was half scrunched up but still in one piece. "We have to stop Omega," said Namine with a determined expression.

Riku took the last page from her and nodded. They hurried towards the control panel. Nearly all of the monitors were broken. The screens were flickering but barely functioning. From the main menu, Riku quickly narrowed down the categories and found the section ont activating self-destruction of the NeoNodody. He made the selection and was prompted by the computer, asking for a password.

* * *

Standing on both sides of Kurix, Sora and Roxas placed their opponent in the middle. 

A keyblade materialised in each of Kurix's hands. In his right hand was the red keyblade Sora saw him use earlier. In his left hand was a new keyblade. It was ebony black in colour. Embroidered on its metallic end was the identical pattern to his other keyblade.

"Are you surprised, Sora? That you and Roxas aren't the only ones who can dual wield," said Kurix. "This," he held up the black keyblade. "Is Deathbreaker." Lowering it down, he held up the red one. "And this, is Redemption."

"Let's go, Sora," Roxas said to him, looking uninterested. At the same time, Sora and Roxas attacked.

For the first few minutes, Sora and Roxas used every single move they knew of against Kurix. He blocked and evaded their attacks with ease. His speed amazed Sora, not even Riku was able to take him one on one without being hit a few of times. So far, Kurix hadn't attacked them once. It was as though he was playing with them. It was starting to frustrate Sora. He was worried too. Roxas told him to listen to Kurix's battle rhythm. It was easier said than done. How could he do it, when not even Roxas could? Roxas admitted he wasn't able listen to with the Mirrors' fighting rhythm. He could only respond to the sounds. He wasn't able to hear the rhythm they were after. If they could, it meant they could predict the next move of their enemy.

Distracted by his own thought during battle had proved to be deadly. Sora was hit solidly on the groin by Redemption. Sora skidded on Omega's back clutching Utlima weapon in his hand. The throbbing pain made his eyes watered. The moment he tried to get back up, an invisible force prevented him from doing so. Sora felt like a tonne had been placed on his back.

Sprawled out on the ground, Sora silently cheered as Roxas hit Kurix twice in an opening. Sora could feel a distant feeling of concern. He realised it wasn't his feeling. It was coming from Roxas. While Kurix was busy with Roxas, the pressure on Sora's back was taken away. Sora thought perhaps with Riku and Roxas' help, he could use his strongest form. He searched for his final form for a boost of power. But it wasn't there.

Then it came to Sora. He couldn't use the final form when he wasn't a complete being. He needed Roxas. At that moment, Sora strongly felt he was lacking. Changing his mind, Sora drew out the Firaga magic, aiming it at Kurix. The flames were inches away from the target before they were stopped abruptly. Sora was shocked to see the magic reflected back. He wanted to brace himself, but it was too fast and unexpected.

"Sora!" he heard Roxas called out desperately as the heat burnt through his entire body.

Sora didn't feel the impact as he hit the ground. His whole body was aching from the burn. There wasn't enough magic left for him to use Curaga. Sora looked up just in time to see Kurix's keyblades pierce through Roxas's chest. Roxas face twisted in pain. Kurix pulled his keyblades out. Roxas collapsed on Omega's back.

Sora felt sharp pain tearing through the same places Roxas was stabbed. It wasn't him who was hurt, but the pain was so real it almost seemed like Kurix stabbed him too.

Kurix grabbed Roxas by the collar and held him in the air with an arm. Desperation filled Sora he saw dark cracks spreading through Roxas' body from his wounds.

"Ro…xas," Sora choked out, crawled towards them. Roxas didn't seem to have heard him. Sora had to stop Kurix. He couldn't let him kill Roxas. It was his fault that Roxas was losing. If he weren't distracted, this wouldn't be happening. Sora could almost hear Roxas say to his heart that he was sorry he couldn't help more.

Kurix smirked ignoring Sora. Roxas couldn't move with the injury he sustained. His consciousness was slipping away. He was near his end and he knew it. The blond hair teenager glowered at Kurix with hatred in his eyes. "Guess it's goodbye, Roxas," said Kurix. In his free hand, Redemption was ready to give Roxas the final finishing blow.

"NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sora screamed.

* * *

Author's rambling: Sorry that updates had been less frequent lately. I haven't been getting very realiable internet connection lately. On top of that, distractions due to the holiday season leave me little quiet time to work on the story. 

I hope you guys are not lost in the story. It's a bit confusing to change character perspectives all the time. Most of the time it is told in Sora and Roxas' persectives. Namine, Riku and Kairi comes in once in a while. It just seems better to tell the story from different views. Fanfiction is flexible like this, there are no rules, you can do almost anything (I'm so irresponsible...)

Riku and Namine's flashbacks had been taking up quite a bit of the story. It's not the main arc so I try to keep them short, but I grew to like RikuNami. May be I'll write a proper story on the pairing in the future. The flashback of this chapter should be the last one.

Lastly, please review!


	13. Chapter 13

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 13:

A group of NeoNobody appeared out of thin air, surrounding Riku and Namine. Riku drew out his keyblade and cleared them before they could get close. More appeared around them and in the sky above. Omega was generating more NeoNobody by the minute. Not too far away was the generator. It looked similar to the wrap machine at the computer room in the haunted mansion and was flashing constantly. A single NeoNobody was generated at each flash. Riku calculated it wouldn't take long before there was an army strong enough to wipe out all the living. They only had one goal – Kingdom Hearts – and they would do anything to achieve it. The Royal Library that was carrying Kingdom Hearts was flocked with countless NeoNobody. Returning to the computer, Riku was reminded he was stuck on. He took out the last page. There wasn't much written on it. Basically, it explained the procedure to trigger self-destruction of all NeoNobody in case things went out of control.

He felt Namine pulled his sleeve. "Riku, Sora and Roxas are not looking good," said Namine, sounding concerned.

Taking a quick glance over his shoulder, Riku saw Sora being sent flying a fair way. Roxas was facing Kurix alone. "Just give me a minute," said Riku as he read the last lines of the page. Namine read along with him. It wasn't long before they heard Sora.

Startled by the scream, Riku and Namine spun around frantically. The first thing that hit them was an eruption of brightness from Sora and Roxas' direction. A bright light pierced through the air, blinding both of them. Gradually it dimmed. Riku and Namine squinted to see what was happening.

A beam of white light appeared from Sora and Roxas' heart position. It then expanded to the rest of their body. The light filled the dark cracks on Roxas' body, healing him instantly. At the same time, all of Sora's wounds were mended.

Kurix was forced to release Roxas as the intense light burnt his hand. Sora and Roxas stood still with heads hang down. The light had almost completely faltered, but a faint glow was left on them. Their cerulean eyes were half opened and cloudy, as though they were in a trance. Sora's black outfit changed to silver, into his final form. Roxas' clothes didn't change. Though they were both floating slightly above ground.

"Incredible," said Namine, bewildered by what was occurring.

"What is happening?" asked Riku, who was equally stunned.

"It looks like Sora and Roxas are able to sense each other by their soul. They are at a state where they're nearly one, but still remain separate. I think it is the light. It responded to Sora," explained Namine.

With keyblades in both hands, Kurix charged at the seemingly half-awake Roxas. With the need to look up, Roxas smoothly glide to the side, evading his opponent. Oathkeeper and Oblivion appeared in his hands simultaneously. Meanwhile, Sora drew close to the two by gliding in the air in similar manner. Ultima Weapon and Fenrir were rotating rapidly on each side of him.

Alongside Roxas, Sora engaged back into battle, circling around their opponent. Their movement reminded Namine of butterflies – rhythmic and elegant yet unpredictable and unorderly. They were so fast sometimes that all others could see was a blur of silver. Namine could tell Kurix was struggling to locate the two. Every time he managed to evade strikes from one of them, he was always hit by the other. His shields were of no use, for that he couldn't see when they would come. Riku doubted he was holding back any more. His Nobody couldn't even lay a finger on Sora and Roxas. Riku noticed although their eyes were fully opened, the cloudiness remained. It was like they were not seeing – they were sensing – sensing the battle rhythm and the presence of one another.

It was were mesmerizing that Riku and Namine almost forgot about the danger around them. They were nearly taken by a NeoNobody sneaking up from behind. Riku fought off some more that were too close to ignore. Their number was increasing at an alarming rate. More filled the air each time they looked up. Then, without warning, they screeched.

Namine covered her ears, wincing in pain as the horrible sound penetrates her eardrums. Riku felt his soul being tore apart, like someone was cutting him up into pieces. The pain was unbearable. The last time it happened resulted his Nobody. This time, he was afraid it was going to take his life. Struggling just to walk, Riku went back to the monitors in shaky steps. He vaguely remembered the clue he read on the last page. "The ultimate goal of all Nobody" That was what Xemnas left for them. On the screen, there were five spaces. Riku typed in the word "heart". In the blink of an eye, all the NeoNobody they could see vanished without a trace.

As sudden as it came, Riku's head stopped hurting. He felt like he was someone who was about to be choke to death by hanging but the rope above snapped miraculously. Before he could enter commands into the computer to take down Omega, Riku saw several shots of Thundaga heading his way. Riku hurled out of the way just in time before the entire control panel exploded into bits. Though he avoided the direct hit, Riku was thrown back by the shockwave. Those shots of Thundaga were the most powerful he had ever seen. It alarmed Riku to realise that Sora meant that to hit Kurix. He was not holding back his power, even if it might hurt bystanders.

Omega stretched out its neck and roared loudly. It twisted and turned, as though it was in agony. Suddenly, Riku found himself standing on nothing. He desperately tried to grab onto anything he could, which turned out to be the edge.

"Riku!" Namine yelled out, arm outstretched. Using all her might, Namine pulled him back up. With the main computer destroyed, Omega ceased all movement. All of a sudden, they found themselves falling down towards the land outside the dead city. Riku caught a glimpse of Sora and Roxas. They didn't seem to notice the changes of Omega at all.

Sora could feel the power of light immersed in his body. Roxas was right there with him. At that moment, Sora didn't think there was anything that could stand in their way. He was able to move anywhere at any speed he wanted. He could see with his own eyes and through Roxas'. He didn't have to see – listening was enough. He heard Kurix's battle rhythm loud and clear. He knew precisely what Kurix was intend to do and where he was going to move. There was only one thing in his mind. His heart told them they must eliminate the threat that almost killed them. Everything else seemed far away. People were shouting out to him, calling his name. But their voices were distant. He sensed changes around him. The floor was tilting and shaking. Everything besides defeating Kurix was insignificant.

Adding a spin to it, Sora threw out Fenrir, aiming for Kurix. At the exact same timing, Roxas threw out Oathkeeper. Kurix dodged the spinning Oathkeeper, but Fenrir cut his shoulder. Sora caught Oathkeeper the moment Roxas caught Fenrir. Not about to give Kurix chances to recover, Sora directed consecutive hits of Blizzaga at him. None missed. Dragging the tip of his keyblades on the ground as he ran, Roxas leaped up and struck at their enemy. Kurix barely blocked it the impact sent him skidding a fair way. Sora and Roxas followed him. Looking down at the unconscious Kurix, Sora put Ultima Weapon on his neck. Just one shove would be it.

"Sora, don't!" Someone rushed to Kurix's side, arms spread out protectively in front of the dark-hair youth.

Sora paused, staring at that person with his cloudy eyes. So did Roxas. That light blond hair and blue eyes was familiar.

"You can't kill him. He's Riku too," she pleaded. He was forgetting something important. Her name slowly came to his mind. The cloudiness in Sora and Roxas' eyes began to fade away, returning to their usual clear state. The white glow surrounded Sora and Roxas dimmed and faded away. Sora was changed back into his usual black outfit. He looked around him. Omega had crash-landed onto solid ground, a clearing away from the deserted city. Sora wondered why he didn't remember any of the crashing part.

"What happened?" Sora asked Roxas. Roxas shrugged.

"Riku, what happened?" Sora asked Riku said when he joined them.

"Just as I thought, you don't remember anything do you?" Riku sighed. "Hell broke loose and you and Roxas _fought_ through it." They were lucky that Omega was hollow inside, so a large portion of the impact force was absorbed when they hit the ground. Seeing Sora's stunned face, Riku grinned. "Why that face? You beat him."

"I guess we did, didn't we Roxas," said Sora, looking over to Kurix, who was being tended by Namine.

"Yeah," Roxas agreed.

Kurix's body began to grow transparent. Namine turned to Riku. She looked rather anxious.

"There is no time, Riku. Listen to me," she said, staring into his aqua pupils. "I know that darkness had caused you a lot of pain and regret. But you need it just like you need air. You can't live without it. There is darkness because there is light, and vice versa. There is always light in the pitch-black darkness, just like there is always darkness in blinding light. You can't lose to either. Because within you, there are both darkness and light. Please Riku, don't reject darkness."

Kurix slowly opened his eyes. "You are right, Namine. There are some things we can never change," hiis face showed a defeated but satisfied smile. "But it didn't hurt trying, did it?"

Namine returned a sad smiled. "We're not going to disappear," she said softly. Roxas stood beside Sora. Though they just defeated Kurix, Roxas didn't look happy at all.

"I know," said Kurix, before closing his eyes. A thin layer of light wrapped around Riku as Kurix vanished into thin air. Riku stared the glow, surprised.

Sora felt the sadness from Roxas. He felt sorry for the Nobody. Surely, there was nothing wrong with wanting to stay existent?

"Sora!" A few voices called out to him in unison. It was King Micky, Donald and Goofy. They brought Leon, Aeris and Yuffie along. Kairi was with them too.

"Leon, Aeris, Yuffie!" Sora said in delight. "You came to help?"

"Yes, the King called for our help," Leon replied.

Yuffie crossed her arms. "But we missed out on all the fun!"

"She tried her best," said Leon. "When she saw all the NeoNobody swarmed on land, she jumped down the gummi ship with a parasuit and ended up stranded on a tree."

"Hey Leon you're not suppose to tell them!" Yuffie complained.

"Has Kurix been defeated…I mean, returned?" King Mickey asked Riku and Namine. Namine nodded in reply.

"Sora, Riku , are you two all right?" Kairi asked.

"Perfect condition," Sora grinned.

His innocent grin made Kairi feel guilty. "Sora, I'm really sorry about pushing you do–"

"What? I've already forgotten about that," Sora winked. Kairi smiled at him gratefully.

Riku looked away when Kairi turned to him. "I'm fine," he said plainly. Kairi lowered her head in disappointment.

"Riku," Namine spoke up. "It was Kairi who helped me back then. She untied the ropes on me. But a little after that Kairi lost her footing and slipped. You shouldn't be angry with her. She was only trying to protect you."

"But why did you tamper with Sora's memories, Namine?" asked Roxas, crossing his arms. Riku looked at Namine in surprise.

It was Namine's turn to lower her head. "I…"

"That was because it was the only thing you could do for Riku at that time, wasn't it, Namine?" Kairi answered for her. Looking at the others, she continued. "Namine's power couldn't save Riku. She knew Riku didn't want Sora to be lured into traps because of him. That's why she erased Sora's memories of me. If he didn't know me, he probably wouldn't trust me so easily. She understands Riku better than I do."

Namine looked at Sora apologetically. "I ended up causing more trouble than helping."

Roxas finally understood why Namine glared at him back then. He blamed her when she tried to help, not knowing she couldn't help the one she wanted to help the most. "Namine, I'm sorry," he said.

Namine shook her head. "No, I was at fault too."

"Namine, There's something I don't really understand." Kairi cupped her chin with a hand. "Why did Riku's Nobody came to be on this very planet? You and Roxas were thrown into worlds that me and Sora weren't in at that time. Also, Riku was in Heartless form for time not much longer than Sora, but his Nobody seemed to know a lot?"

Before Namine replied, Roxas cut in. "It was only coincidence."

"I think so too. Where Nobody end up is completely random," Namine agreed. "As with his memories…I would say the Soul Shatter that triggered the split had something to do with it. You're right. Normally, he wouldn't remember much about Riku. Just like Roxas didn't know he was Sora's Nobody to begin with."

Everyone started talking to each other. Aeris and Yuffie asked about the events they missed. Donald and Goofy retold their stories. King Mickey and Leon was discussing something with seriously. Kairi was uttering apologies to Riku while Namine was busy explaining Kairi didn't mean any harm. Sora paid little attention to their conversation. There was a lot on his mind. He needed to know.

Taking a deep breath, Sora stepped closer to Roxas, looking at him face to face. "Roxas, there's something I've been wanting to ask you," he said. He looked down to his shoes. "Do you…hate me?"

It was all it took to quiet down everyone, even Yuffie. Sora and Roxas became the center of attention. Roxas stared at Sora for a long while.

"I did," Roxas said. There was little emotion in his voice. Sora winced. He knew Roxas was speaking the truth. "You have everything I ever wanted, Sora. You have friends and family. There are people thinking about you, and people who are waiting for your return. You have a life. You have a future."

Sora felt his heart ached. Summoning up his courage, he looked at Roxas in the eyes. Roxas' expression was unreadable. Sora didn't feel changes in emotion within Roxas through their link.

"Roxas…" Namine began but trailed off. Her face showed hesitation.

Roxas closed his eyes and opened them again. "All of that was taken away from me when I finally found you. I did hate you, but only for a second," he said. "I was envious of you, Sora."

"Namine?!" Their conversation was interrupted when Donald and Goofy cried out in surprise. The colours on Namine were fading away. She was gradually becoming transparent.

Namine looked down at her hands. She could see through them. "This body can't hold up much longer," she said.

"Roxas!" It was King Mickey this time. Similarly, Roxas was becoming transparent as well.

"We have to do something!" Sora cried urgently. "We can't let Namine and Roxas…" He paused. What was it? Deep inside, Sora knew the answer.

"Thank you, Sora." Namine smiled at him gratefully. "But there's nothing anyone can do. This is fate. We're Nobody – nonexistent beings," She noticed Kairi was walking towards her.

"Sora's memories have all been restored. There's nothing you have to worry about," Namine told Kairi.

"That's not what I want to ask," said Kairi, shaking her head. "Isn't there something you want to tell Riku?"

Namine's azure eyes widened, stunned. It wasn't quite what she expected from Kairi.

"There must be something we can do!" Sora yelled in frustration. Everyone was looking at him sorrowfully and he didn't like it. Why couldn't they be thinking instead of feeling sorry for him? He turned to the King, eyes pleading. "You know a way, don't you King Mickey?" The small King looked at him sympathetically. "No I don't."

"Namine?" Riku called her name.

Namine turned to face Riku. The colours on her body had almost completely faded. She spoke softly. "There was something I wanted to tell you a long time ago. I regret it when I couldn't say it to you before I left last time." She smiled at Riku one last time. "I'm so glad I met you, Riku." Then she turned around, hugging Kairi, who hugged her back. For a moment, Kairi's body was surrounded by a bright light. And then, Namine was gone.

"This can't be…" Sora dropped to his knees in despair.

"Sora," the King spoke in a gentle tone. "Namine and Roxas are Nobody. They can't exist without a heart."

Roxas crouched down on one knee. "Sora, do you know my real name?"

Sora looked up to him. His heart was screaming out the answer, but he was blocking it out deliberately. "What…what are you talking about, Roxas?"

"Roxas isn't my real name. Xemnas made it up," Roxas stared into Sora's eyes. "My name is Sora."

Standing back up, Sora shook his head furiously. "NO! You're all wrong!" he shot back, not realising he was shouting. "You too, Roxas. You're not me. We're different, not the same. We think differently, talk differently and fight differently. You're not just a Nobody. You exist – you're right here!"

Roxas froze in astonishment. Sora just said something no one had ever said to a Nobody. That moment, he felt something changed. He couldn't quite grasp it. He wished Namine was there to hear it.

"You and Axel are both idiots," said Roxas, a small smile hang on his lips. They were the only two who ever tried to stop him from the fusion, even when they understood perfectly well it wasn't possible. Long ago, Axel had once asked if he had a heart. Roxas said that it was up to Sora to decide. And now, Sora had.

"Why are you willing to give up your life for me?" asked Sora bitterly, tears streaming down his face. He could hardly make out the outline of Roxas, who was almost translucent. "Don't you want to see Hayner, Pence and Olette again?"

"I'm not giving up my life, Sora," replied Roxas earnestly. "But if it was you, I think you can live my part for me."

"But…" There was so much Sora wanted to say. He didn't know anything about Roxas, but Roxas know a lot about him. There was so much he wanted to ask Roxas. How did he join Organisation XIII? How did he befriend Axel? How did he find him? The more things he wanted to say, the more difficult it was to decide where to begin.

Roxas smiled at him. "I won't disappear, Sora." He offered his right hand to Sora. "We'll meet again, ok?"

Vision blurred by his tears, Sora looked at the hand numbly. He knew Roxas and Namine would not simply disappear or vanish. He just didn't want them to leave. His hand reached out. The moment their hands clasped, a white glow enveloped Sora just like it did to Kairi and Riku. A warm sensation embraced him. It was like taking an afternoon nap under mild sunlight. An unexpected sleepiness persuaded Sora to close his eyes. He felt at peace. Roxas wasn't feeling any pain. Sora knew Roxas was gone.

He found everyone was staring at him when he reopened his eyes. Donald and Goofy came up to him with worried faces.

"Are you ok, Sora?" asked Goofy.

"We're very sorry about…Roxas and Namine," said Donald.

It took Sora a while to find his voice. "…I'm ok," he answered before turning his back to them and began to walk away.

"Sora," Aeris began, stopping Sora on his track. She walked up to him so only he could hear her. "Remember that I spoke to Roxas in Radient Garden? I asked him what you just did. I asked him why he was helping you, and what he was going to do. He said me that I wouldn't be able to tell if he was telling the truth anyway." Sora wanted to smile. That sounded like Roxas. Aeris continued. "At the end he just said to me that he doesn't hate you. He said that if he had been the one with the heart and you were his Nobody, you would've done the same thing. And he is glad his somebody was you."

Sora wiped away his tears and looked up to the star-filled sky. It was a fine night.

* * *

Author's rambling: Long waited chapter 13! I know, I took ages on this chapter. This is the last one so I had to tie everything in. And for this reason allow me blab on a bit more than usual. I'm planning to write an epilogue for this story. But I have this Kingdom Hearts challenge fic dueing in soon (a Livejournal community activity) that I've been putting off. So I got to do that first. I do have a title for this chapter (for once!), but it'd spoil the ending, so I'll add it later. 

Some readers are probably puzzled about who the main character is - Sora or Roxas? In fact, they both are. Another thing worth mentioning is that Riku and Namine played more important roles than I initially planned (back at early stage). About the pairing, it's not official really, as official KH pairings are. I have nothing against RokuNami or SoraNami. Perhaps the reason I'm fond of RikuNami is that it seems much more romantic and tragic than than the other two. Am I a sadist?

Thank you very very much for those who give me continuous support by commenting and reviewing. This story received so many hits I'll be lying if I say I'm not proud of it. A lot of time and planning had been put into this. But still, there are some errors that I hope you won't notice sweat-drops.

Last but no least, please review! They are better than the Wii, Pirates of the Carribean and blue-tac put together.


	14. Epilogue

Epilogue

Riku made his way through the underground corridors of Radiant Garden with haste. There appeared to be fewer heartless and nobody than there used to be. Not bothering to waste his time on them, Riku avoided battles by reducing encounters as much as possible. Soon, he arrived at his destination – philosopher Ansem's study room. Without knocking, Riku opened the door.

Just as he thought, Sora was there, sitting behind the Ansem's spacious desk. He was reading a book. There were dozens of similar books piled in front of him.

"There you are," said Riku, walking towards Sora as he spoke. "We've been looking all over for you." Sora didn't respond. Instead, he continued reading. It was just as Riku suspected. It had been three days since they had destroyed Omega and all the NeoNobody. After that, Sora, Kairi and Riku went back to Destiny Island. Everyone returned to their own world. Then, two days later, Sora went missing. It took a while of searching before Riku discovered that the gummi ship the King left them for emergency was gone. With help from King Mickey, Riku was able to borrow another gummi ship to look for Sora.

"Sora, what are you doing?" Riku asked in a calm voice.

Sora shifted his gaze away from the book to look at Riku. "Reading," he answered plainly.

"Do you know what you're doing?" Riku's voice grew louder. He couldn't suppress the anger within.

Closing the book he was reading, Sora turned to face Riku with a serious expression. "Riku, don't you ever wonder why there are Heartless and Nobody in this world? They're not wanted and not needed. Yet they exist. I want to know why."

Hardly believing what he was hearing, Riku had to refrain himself from hitting his friend. "Do you know that right now you're walking down the same path Xehanort and Ansem went?! Looking into the heart will only lead you to greed and hatred!"

"I won't walk the same path as them, Riku," Sora reassured.

Riku slammed his fist on the desk, sending loose papers flying. "Don't you understand? They didn't know they'd be consumed by darkness to start with." In only a few days, Sora matured so much he seemed like a different person. He couldn't forget Sora's face when Moogly asked him where Roxas was. His best friend was devastated. The others told the little moogle that Roxas had to go somewhere and wouldn't return in a long time.

"Heartless and Nobody should not exist. Their existence is painful to them as it is for others. I have to stop this cycle, Riku. There shouldn't be any new Heartless and Nobody in this world," said Sora in a resolute tone.

"That's impossible," Riku stated flatly. He hated the room he was standing in. It was filled of research about darkness, heartless, nobody and the heart. No one in the world should ever investigate so deep into the heart. He wished he could just burn it all up right there right then. He hoped King Mickey would hurry up and do something about it. Or else he would.

"Even if it looks impossible, I have to do something. I can't just sit here and do nothing, not after what happened to Roxas and Namine," said Sora. It was the first time he mentioned their names after the two were gone.

Riku closed his eyes. Him alone knowing the truth about the fate of Roxas and Namine was enough. Sora didn't have to know. That was what he thought. Did you know this would happen, Namine? Riku thought to himself. Is this why you want Sora to forget? It is better not to remember, isn't it?

Eventually, Riku spoke. "Sora, all Roxas and Namine want is for us to live like ordinary people."

"Roxas entrusted me with his life," Sora paused for a moment. "He would want me to walk the path I choose."

Sighing deeply, Riku turned around as Sora returned to reading. Never had he saw Sora read seriously until now. Normally, he would have laughed at the sight. But now he couldn't force a smile. Sora sounded so decisive it was almost shocking. Disheartened and speechless, Riku left the Ansem's study.

* * *

Author's rambling: Finally, I can pull the curtain and call this story complete. Sorry for dragging it for so long; and thank you for your patience. In my opinion, the short epilogue isn't vital to the story as a whole. However I feel that something should be said about Sora, after all that he has gone through. I have ended it on a heavy note. At the moment, I won't rule out a possible sequel to this story. If I'm inspired enough I may give it a go. Sequels can be wondrous but can also be disasterous. So I have said nothing. Well then, please review now that you have read the entire story! 


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